Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Broken Ideals
by ShadowVulpi
Summary: A former human is transformed into a Cubone without a trace of who he is or where he came from. Together with a Zorua, the two attempt to survive in a world infested with demonic creatures that strike without warning and find answers to the questions they each seek.
1. Prologue: Storm of Plague

**Prologue**

**Storm of Plague**

* * *

_**Tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp…..**_

There was a great mountain in the distance that overshadowed the vast land for miles and miles. A mountain, that despite its great fertility, no one chose to live on it. In one section of the land near the mountain were multiple paths carved by the endless amount of travelers that came through there. Each one weaved through the flat lands and stretched in various directions. One of these particular paths winded along the cliffs overlooking a deep valley that just barely managed to escape the shadow of the mountain. This particular trail was one of the less traveled trails but one wouldn't think that at the moment.

_**Tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp…**_

Many Pokémon, hundreds perhaps, were trekking on this very path with bags strapped to them. There were a wide variety of Pokémon walking amongst one another, all that were vastly different from one another. It ranged anywhere from the tiny Wooper who bounced along the road to the mighty bulk of an Onix, who had to take extra care in not crushing the smaller Pokémon crowded nearby its body.

Yet despite all the differences between the travelers, all managed to get along with one another. Even the Seviper and Zangoose that were walking by each other's sides weren't quarreling with one another as they most often did. All eyes were fixed forward in the direction opposite of the mountain while they chatted among one another. Despite the weary looks upon many of the faces, none ceased walking.

Everyone pressed on.

That is, except for one.

On the edge of the cliffs where the ground was stable stood a small Pokémon; a little grayish fox with bits of red and black markings on different parts of her body. She looked out toward that very mountain, Emerald Mountain as it was called by the locals, with a longing expression.

The mountain was an ominous black that seemed to be moving like a water current moving downward to the land below. At the peak was a swirling mesh of gray and white that extended far into the sky. In the middle of this hurricane-like cloud was a black spot that appeared small from where the Pokémon stood, but the fox knew that it was actually quite monstrous in size. The dark hole in that strange weather formation was continually pouring a type of black rain over the mountain which then proceeded to become one with the strange substances that were flowing down the mountain.

"Hey, you okay?" a voice asked from behind the Zorua.

The Zorua cringed a bit from the sudden voice after being so focused on the mountain but she quickly recovered before turning her head slightly to see who was behind her. It was a Torchic staring at her with a worried expression. The Zorua sighed in relief since she knew this Torchic was her friend that she had known since she was a hatchling.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Chi." the Zorua said calmly before looking back at the mountain.

The Torchic named Chi went over to the Zorua before sitting down beside her. They both looked out toward the mountain as it slowly grew darker and the 'rain' grew heavier from what they could tell.

"What do you think it is?" Chi asked the Zorua curiously, referring to the substance overtaking the mountain.

"I'm not really sure honestly," the Zorua replied with a shrug. "I've never seen anything like it. And it doesn't help that no one with us will explain anything."

"Maybe they don't know anything either." the Torchic said with a shrug.

"No, they know something," the Zorua said with a glare as it peered toward the mountain. "They just don't want anyone else to know. But what could it be…"

"Aw there you go again with having suspicions about everything and everyone, Zekra," Chi whined in annoyance as she flapped her growing feathers a bit. "What is with you dark types and always having to be so paranoid about every little detail?"

Zekra scoffed at the comment before resting her head on the cold ground beneath her. She didn't want to explain her suspicions since according to the non-dark types, her kind were always ones to see nonexistent hidden character traits in others and were too crafty for their own good. There were also a few other mean assumptions made against the dark types, but she didn't think about those ones.

"So, where do you think we're going now?" Zekra then asked the Torchic beside her.

"I heard that we're going to Aurora Town actually," she replied. "It's the closest town to here that isn't by Emerald Mountain. I just hope that they can fit us all there."

"Well I'm sure they'll manage," shrugged the Zorua. "Aurora Town is pretty big. I heard it's twice as big as our city. And it even has a river nearby! Maybe we could play there together!"

"I can't do that!" Chi said in a cowardly tone as she backed away a bit. "I'm a fire Pokémon! I'll die!"

"You won't drown," the Zorua snickered. "That's just a crazy myth about your kind. No one actually dies if they're in contact with the water for like five seconds."

"How would you know?! You're not a fire type!" the Torchic shouted. "You can pretend to be one, but it's not the same!"

"Sure it isn't. Plus you've never actually gone in the water, so you wouldn't know now would you?" the Zorua taunted playfully.

Flustered by the Zorua, Chi began scratching at the ground with her sharp claws and began to kick up sand into Zekra's face. The Zorua laughed as she tried to cover herself from the dust that was getting into her eyes. She flipped over to her side so that her head was no longer in the way of the playful attack before getting ready for a counterattack.

However, just as she was about to lunge at the Torchic, Zekra noticed that there was no longer sand being pelted at her. And then that's when something else was noticed; there were no longer the sounds of Pokémon talking or their footsteps treading against the rocky ground. The Zorua looked back at her friend to find that she had her back to her and was facing toward the trail they had just come from.

"What's the matter?" the Zorua asked as she looked over to the trail as well to find nothing there.

Chi didn't answer.

Zekra looked upon the other Pokémon that were traveling along to find that they too were staring in the direction of the trail behind them. In each of their eyes there was a strange expression of horror and curiosity, though the former was especially apparent.

Everything seemed to be completely silent.

So silent, that one could hear a pin drop.

Nobody moved for a long time as the wind seemed to stir up a bit.

And then there was a sound.

It was the sound of something whispering.

Whispers that muttered things that no one could understand.

It started growing louder.

Pokémon began to grow fearful and were on the verge of entering their flight instinct.

Zekra began to tug at Chi's feathers to get her out of her trance that she had seemingly fallen into along with the others.

The noise grew even louder.

"Come on Chi! We need to move!"

_**FWOOOSSHHHH!**_

Pokémon started to flee as the sounds of something burning began to fill the air. Yet, there was neither fire nor smoke to be seen.

The Pokémon rushed up the trail, the only direction they could go to get away from the noise. No one knew what they were hearing, but the instinct of fleeing was heavily drowning out their other thoughts.

No one could take the time to ponder in this situation.

And then a new noise came.

_**SKKREEEEEEEEE!**_

Knowing there was no other choice, the Zorua bit down on the Torchic's back, instantly snapping the bird back into reality.

Chi instantly turned around to face Zekra, fear brimming in her eyes and her beak quivering.

"RUN!" Zekra shouted as she shoved her friend into the crowd of terrorized and fleeing Pokémon.

The Torchic managed to get running in time with the group despite the sudden push into it thankfully. The Zorua quickly tried to join the stampede in an effort to escape whatever was coming toward them with a panicky look in her eyes.

Something about whatever was coming toward them didn't feel natural.

But before the Zorua could enter the group, a wispy black creature swooped right in front of her.

She jumped backwards from the sudden appearance of the strange creature. Zekra nearly fell backwards, but she somehow managed to keep her foot holding.

She watched in horror as she found even more creatures of similar appearance joined in behind this new creature and slowly started to swarm in toward the fleeing group.

Each creature had a different coloring scheme to their bodies as if each were a different kind of creature rather than a large legion of one kind.

Even as they swarmed together like a giant storm, it was easy to see the individual creatures.

All, however, carried one same characteristic.

Their eyes.

Where the eyes should have been on each creature, there was a light.

A bright, candle-like light glowed in each and every creature's eyes. They shined so brilliantly as if an actual flame were behind them and seemed to flow out of the creature's eye sockets.

Just as Zekra noticed this, the dense haze that trailed out of each of the creatures began to fill the air. Various colors of haze slowly impaired the vision of the trapped Pokémon.

The Zorua was cut off from the others by the thick haze as she heard the shrieking of the ghostly creatures. She watched from the other side of the fog as the phantoms kept the Pokémon in line by circling around them while a few others would dive into the crowd.

There had to be hundreds of these creatures, all smiling evilly as the trapped Pokémon screamed in terror.

The mist-like wall separating her from the others was getting thicker, but she could still see what was happening to the Pokémon, if only vaguely.

They were trying to escape from their capturers, but they couldn't see where they were going. Several Pokémon crashed into one another, knocking each other down and tripping over one another. It was a mad fest within the closed bounds of these demons.

Everyone's screams mixed with the childish, eerie laughter that came from the smoky ones.

The haze became darker as the creatures began closing in on their prey.

Many Pokémon started to fight back.

Vines whipped through the air from a terrified, little Bulbasaur.

Fireballs streamed in all directions from the gaping mouths of a Charmander and Flareon.

Water blasts shot around from the mouths of several Wooper.

Electricity jolted from the body of an Ampharos, who tried to remain calm through the chaos.

Spheres of energy collided after leaving the fists of several psychic and fighting types.

Powerful winds blew around the entire area from the frantically flapping wings of Pidove, who were unable to fly out of the trap despite their advantage over air.

Ghostly shrieks filled the air as many of the phantom-like creatures were struck by the various attacks. Once hit, their entire being dissipated into the wind.

However, for every one that was eliminated, seemingly five more took its place.

The numbers never seemed to decrease.

The darkness soon became an impenetrable barrier that closed around everybody. Zekra could no longer see the other side, but she could hear the screams and the wails that resulted from the others. She could only imagine what was happening on the other side, but even then, it was probably much less gruesome than reality.

She started to back away from the thick wall of haze in front of her.

She had to find a way out.

But there was none.

That cliff was the only safe place.

The entire trail had been devoured by the seemingly endless swarm of demons that were still continuing to pile in from the end of the trail.

Zekra wanted to huddle up and pretend that none of this was happening.

She wanted to pretend she was still at her old home with her friends.

She wanted to pretend that that the terrified shrieks filling the air were just the wind.

She didn't want to think this was real. She hoped deep down that it was a nightmare and she would wake up.

She closed her eyes in an effort to awaken from this nightmare.

She started to count to three.

Before she could even get to two, Zekra felt a sudden presence in front of her. Thinking it was someone who had managed to escape, she opened her eyes and expected to find a fellow acquaintance.

Upon doing so, she wished she had kept her eyes shut.

Floating about three inches away from Zekra was one of those ghostly creatures, staring at her intently with the hellish lights that were its eyes.

The Zorua jumped backwards involuntarily, nearly falling off the cliff.

However, she managed to stay on the land and watched as the creature continued to gaze at her. Despite having a smoky haze oozing off of its body, the creature did have a definite shape that seemed solid, which seemed odd since they moved so fluidly as if it were made of gas. It was a four legged creature just like the Zorua, though about half as small in size. It had two, brown pointy ears that matched the color the rest of the body and a bushy tail that wagged slowly from behind. Every other notable detail was lost into the ragged fur that no longer seemed to be organic, but rather some kind of ghostly energy.

However, there was one part of its features that was notable.

There was a white collar of fur around its neck that was so untamed that it was frizzed heavily, making it stick up in several areas like tiny needles.

And then Zorua saw what she didn't see earlier.

This creature...

It looked just like an Eevee. Granted, it was hard to tell that it was one with many of its features changed, but it was an Eevee.

The ears, the tail, and the collar were all notable biology of an Eevee that no other Pokémon had.

Zekra took a step backwards once she reached this epiphany.

A couple more of these demons landed on both sides of the Eevee-like creature, these ones having the vague appearance of a Raichu and a Scyther.

Just like the Eevee, their forms were wispier and no part of their body seemed to be made of flesh anymore.

Their unnatural eyes gazed toward the Zorua as they seemed to glow brighter.

"Stay away from me!" Zekra shrieked as she found herself frozen in place at the edge of the cliff, unable to go back further.

_**SKKREEE! **_

They all leapt at her at once with hungry looks in their eyes.

The Scyther's bladed arms were held in a scissor formation.

The Raichu's paws were held out to show deadly claws.

The Eevee's mouth was wide open to show the numerous fangs that weren't normally in an Eevee's mouth.

The Zorua cringed and took a step backwards.

The cliff beneath her feet suddenly crumbled, falling apart beneath her.

Before Zekra knew it, she was tumbling downward into the valley.

As she plummeted toward the bottom, she saw the three ghostly Pokémon watching her from the cliffs.

They didn't bother to go after Zekra even though they could very well catch her.

They felt it was a waste of effort. She was going to die in just a matter of time.

They backed away from the cliff before joining again with their kind. They all stood quietly on the trail that was now vacant of regular Pokémon.

Not a trace of anyone who had been crossing was found. It was though they had been wiped clean off the face of the land by these phantoms.

The three looked into the eyes of a creature resembling a Dragonite for a few seconds, their eyes flickering.

Seeing this, the dragon nodded in response.

_**EEEEERRRRAAAAAH!**_

It let out a mighty roar as it took off to the skies with a quick flap of its wings and headed off toward Emerald Mountain.

All of the others swiftly followed suit until there was not a single one was left.

But unknown to the demons, a Pidove slowly began to emerge from deep within the valley.

It slowly began to gain altitude as it flew in the direction opposite of where the mountain was and to where the traveling Pokémon had intentionally wanted to go.

It seemed to have trouble flying, probably due to the tail not being made of feathers, but of tuffs of slate-gray fur.

Yet the most noticeable aspect, of all things, were the tears streaming from the bird's face as it flew.


	2. Chapter 1: Cubone Without a Skull

**Chapter 1**

**Cubone Without a Skull**

* * *

The Pidove soared awkwardly through the air high above the lands and toward the sun that was beginning to disappear over the horizon in the far west. The tears filling the eyes of the weary Pokémon were making it difficult to see, but thankfully there weren't any obstacles in the air.

"I can't keep flying," the bird said as it panted heavily. "I don't know how long I can keep this up. But I need to get to the town."

Through it was so painful, the Pidove flapped harder as it passed over the edge of the cliffs to enter a large field that had a few trees spread throughout the vicinity. The bird couldn't tell if there were any Pokémon living in those fields but it didn't bother trying to wonder. It was too busy focusing on trying to erase its mind of the horrors it had witnessed only moments ago.

The screams of the innocent…

The ghostly forms of those creatures that looked like Pokémon…

The eyes that pierced into her soul…

"I can't keep going," the Pidove finally said in a whimper. "It's too much right now."

The bird then flew downward towards the grassy land but unfortunately not very gracefully. The wings were much too sore from the inadequate flying technique used and gave up on the bird as it started to descend. The Pidove suddenly began to tumble through the air like a ball as a bright pink aura surrounded its body. Moments later, the light died down to reveal Zekra in her usual form. With the illusion gone now though she couldn't do anything but watch herself plummet toward the ground from about ten feet up.

_**THUMP!**_

She landed on her face.

While not as much of a painful landing as she expected, the Zorua still felt waves of pain shoot throughout her body. She fell over to the side and rubbed her nose and cursed at herself for not being able to keep up her illusion ability long enough to have a safe landing.

She had been trying to learn how to master that talent of hers for a very long time, the talent only known by her kind and their evolved forms. However, she was never able to get it quite right due to it sapping away all of her energy too quickly. Her kind were supposed to be masters of disguise. The ability to pretend to become any Pokémon they see and play with the minds of other Pokémon was a talent all Zorua and Zoroark took pride in.

Being a Zorua and not having full control over that technique put her at great shame.

However, that wasn't of a major concern at the moment. Right now she needed to find a place to rest for the night. Even though Zekra was used to staying up late in the night and running about with the other nocturnal Pokémon, she knew that she had to get some sleep for tomorrow. She would have to walk to town and she'd need all the rest she could get. She couldn't become a Pidove again; she could only change into another's form if she saw them before her and even then she knew she'd only repeat today's efforts even if she tried again.

Struggling to her feet and with water still in her eyes, Zekra slowly began to wander the fields that separated the town and the valley she had fallen into. These were the Gray Lands, a flat land that stretched on for seemingly forever and was void of any towns. It was the only way to get to Aurora Town from where she was now.

As the sun continued to set, Zekra's mind continued to replay the events she had witnessed on those cliffs with those Pokémon. The memories were haunting her as they seemed to get more gruesome as the night came. She kept thinking she could hear the screams of someone in the distance, but whenever she'd look, no one was there. She would try to shut out the screams, but they continued to call out to her as if beckoning her to be with them.

Beckoning to have the only survivor with them.

She saw the fear in the victim's eyes before they were taken away from her in a quick instant. The unexpectedness of such an untimely event that she somehow managed to survive replayed over and over again as if to burn into her mind that everything was her fault. Her friend's face came to the front of her mind with the same terror stricken expression she had last seen on the Torchic.

"I'm sorry Chi..." Zekra whimpered as she kept walking. "I didn't know that I was going to get you killed… I-I just wanted to protect you!"

The face wouldn't go away. It was soon crowded by the faces of others who she had seen traveling, all with that same look in their eyes. Zekra shook her head and dried her eyes with her front paw.

"I can't let this get to me," Zekra muttered. "I need to keep going. I have to get to the city… that's what everybody would want."

Through the physical and emotional fatigue, the Zorua slowly made her way over to the nearest tree in the area. The images still raged in her vision but she did her best to ignore them and thought about finding a good spot to sleep under the tree. It was a somewhat large tree that seemed to have been around for at least a couple of years but there weren't any branches sturdy enough to hold her nor were there any hollows in the trunk.

She'd have to sleep under the shelter of the leaves tonight.

Zekra sighed as she approached the tree and prepared to curl up next to the base of the trunk. Before she could however, she saw something next to the tree in the faint lights of the disappearing sun.

There, curled up and fast asleep, was a small brown creature. It had two, small pointy spikes protruding out of its back, a small tail, and a belly that was a lighter, tannish color compared to the rest of its body. The face looked similar to that of a baby Kangaskhan's, but it was the same brown shade as the majority of the creature's body. The eyes were much more triangular than a Kangaskhan's', the muzzle a tiny bit longer, and the horn-like ears were much pointier. It looked like a Pokémon, but Zekra couldn't tell what kind it was supposed to be despite knowing many kinds. Seeing it made Zekra's inner turmoil cease if only temporarily, and become replaced with wonder.

"Hmmm should I wake it up?" Zekra wondered out loud. "I haven't seen any wild Pokémon, so this is probably a traveler. But if it is a wild Pokémon, I don't want to have to fight. I'm already tired enough."

Curiosity got the best of her though as she approached the snoozing creature and began nudging it with her head.

"Hey, wake up!" she said as she pushed the creature onto its back.

His eyes squinted shut even tighter from the sudden disturbance before beginning to awaken. Small white eyes with black centers opened, then blinked a few times tiredly. The Pokémon sluggishly sat up, rubbing his head.

"Where am I?" he asked Zekra.

"You're in the Gray Lands," the Zorua explained with a smile and sat down in front of the Pokémon. "It's not exactly all that gray, though, as you can tell."

She started to chuckle at the comment, but the Pokémon before her wasn't doing the same. Instead his eyes began to grow wide before he suddenly started backing away frantically on his hands.

"You… You're a talking Zorua!" he shouted. "How are you talking?! Pokémon can't talk!"

"Well of course I can," Zekra said with a quizzical expression. "I've been talking since the day I hatched. And same goes for my other friends. And even you can talk... whatever Pokémon you are."

"Huh?"

The Pokémon stopped moving. He brought his hands up to its face, staring at the paws that had a mitten-like shape to them. He pinched those two claws together to make sure they belonged to him and watched as they moved just as he told them to. He seemed surprised that they really were his hands now...

"Is everything okay?" Zekra asked as she made her way over to him. "You're acting really weird..."

"No, everything's not okay," he said as he checked the rest of his body to figure out what he was. "I'm supposed to be a human! But now I'm a Pokémon!"

"Human?" Zekra repeated. "But there aren't any humans around here. They live overseas on different regions of the world... if the rumors are true as they say."

"Well I was one!" he shouted. "And now I'm just this... this…"

He found he was unable to finish the sentence since the shock of finding himself in a new body was still taking its course.

"Alright, well what's your name then?" the Zorua asked in an attempt to get more information out of the strange one.

"It's..." The Pokémon paused before scratching its head. He pondered for a moment or two. "... I don't know. I can't remember."

"Really?" Zekra asked in surprise. "Is there anything you remember about yourself besides being human?"

The former human thought for a moment as he searched his mind for former memories about his life. He meditated in his thoughts for only a few seconds before the awful truth hit him.

"No, I don't remember anything," he finally replied as he looked down at his paws. "I just know that I'm human. Or at least supposed to be. Now I'm what looks like a Cubone from what I can tell."

"Ohhhhh so _that's_ what you are!" Zekra said as the epiphany came to her. "I thought your form looked familiar! I just couldn't recognize what you were since you didn't have a skull helmet! Or any kind of bone weapon! That's how most Pokémon are able to recognize Cubone and Marowak!"

"Well it doesn't really matter anyway," the Cubone said bitterly. "I'm not a Cubone. I'm a human. But you probably don't believe me anyway."

The Cubone stared down Zekra knowingly since he knew that the chances of someone believing his words were very slim. This was especially true among complete strangers. After all, why would somebody who had never known him trust anything he said?

And yet, to the former human's surprise, Zekra smiled softly.

"I believe you when you say you used to be human," the Zorua said. "You seem nice. And very rarely do Pokémon hide their true nature. We're not like humans where we're afraid to show our true personality. So I do believe you. Plus it explains why you're not wearing a helmet since Cubone never take those things off. If you just transformed into a Pokémon when you were human recently, then it makes sense that you haven't found yourself a helmet yet."

"Really? You trust what I say even though we just met?" the Cubone asked with wide eyes.

"Yeah! And I also think it's cool that you used to be human," Zekra said happily. "It's like being friends with the stuff out of legends! Like being buddies with Raikou!"

The Cubone didn't reply but rather stared blankly at Zekra. Yet despite the sudden trust he didn't expect, he was still thankful for having this Zorua believe him. He still felt a bit odd though with being with a talking Pokémon.

"Oh yeah, forgot to introduce myself," the Zorua said as she beamed at him. "My name is Zekra."

"Zekra? You're not just called Zorua?" the former human asked.

"No, no one really calls other Pokémon by their species' name. We all have nicknames," Zekra explained casually. "It helps when there are multiple of the same Pokémon in one area. That way no one gets mixed up with somebody else. Why do you ask?"

"Just feels like I'm supposed to call Pokémon by their kind," the Cubone admitted. "Maybe it's an old habit of mine from my human days."

He pondered in that for a moment, but shook the thought off when he saw the strange looks Zekra was giving him.

"Nice to meet you though, Zekra," the Cubone then said with a nod. "I would tell you my name, but like I said, I can't remember it."

"Hmmm guess we'll have to give you a new name then until you remember your old one. That okay?" Zekra asked.

"Sure, it's fine," the Cubone said with a shrug.

"Alright, let's see here," Zekra pondered. "Well, I do have one idea if you're okay with it."

"What's the name you have in mind?" the Cubone asked.

"Terron," Zekra answered with a small smile.

"That's a really strange name," the Cubone stated bluntly. "Where'd you get that from?"

"It's one of my friend's names," Zekra explained. "He was a Sandile that I grew up with. You just remind me of him is all. I mean, he didn't have amnesia and he wasn't a human at one point, but your personality is a lot like his."

"So you want to give me a name that belongs to someone else because I'm like them?" the Cubone asked reluctantly. "I don't know. It just feels like I'm stealing your friend's name and… it feels like I'm pretending to be them. It's like I'm stealing their place in life by having their name."

"I don't think it's like that," Zekra replied. "Nobody can steal your own identity from you. Besides, I think my friend wouldn't mind having his name given to you. I think he'd like that actually."

"Well, if you say," the Cubone said as he shrugged. "I suppose that can be my name until I figure out my real name."

The Zorua seemed pleased with being able to find a name for the former human, but her eyes held a small glimmer of reminiscing. For just a brief second, Zekra appeared to be in melancholy, but it quick faded before it became too apparent.

"Alright then," the Zorua said before beginning to curl up snuggly in the grass. "Glad to know each other's names. So what are you going to do now, Terron? If you're human and don't remember anything, do you have any idea on how you're going to get your memories and become human again?"

"Well I don't really know," Terron said in a melancholy tone. "But, you said something about humans being in different areas of the world. What do you mean by that?"

"Oh, that," Zekra said as she remembered briefly mentioning that. "Yeah, supposedly there are humans in this world, but they live across the sea in distant lands. However, no one has seen any actual humans for who knows how long. So now they're just legends according to us Pokémon since we thought they went extinct already. But I guess you disproved that humans are gone."

"Did Pokémon and humans ever live together in this region?" Terron asked curiously.

"Well according to the stories they did," Zekra answered. "They all got along really well and you humans gave us some great things that we still use today like the use of your technical machines. It would normally take forever to learn powers we don't learn naturally, but with those miracle workers we can learn it in a mere five minutes!"

She then paused for a moment as the excitement in her eyes faded.

"And then they just left one day. All of them just disappeared. And they never came back. Legends say that they went to other regions of the world, but no one's ever seen them. It took some adjusting both physically and emotionally to their disappearance, but everyone managed somehow. Everyone learned how to cope and managed to preserve what the humans left for us so that it lasted basically forever, but it's just so weird how they vanished without a trace. Even though no one really thinks much about humans anymore, it still bothers me how something so important to us Pokémon could leave for seemingly no reason."

Terron remained silent. He was too marveled by the story he had just heard.

"But why did they leave and the stories not say why?" Zekra rambled. She looked over to Shame. "What do you think?"

Terron blinked, yet he couldn't say anything. He didn't know what to think of this story. It did seem odd that the humans left and no Pokémon ever found them again. Surely there could have been Pokémon that would cross the oceans to get to the other lands and tell the ones back here what they had seen. And surely the humans didn't just disappear as Zekra was telling him. They had to have had a good reason to leave. But what?

He shook his head to clear his thoughts. The story had too many vague holes in it. He couldn't fill them in himself. Besides, it was a legend, not an actual history lesson. There was no way he could know if it was actually true. If he wanted real answers he'd have to play along with what fate had in store for him.

"Hey, I'm gonna get some rest," Zekra's voice said sleepily. "It's dark already and I was going to head to Aurora Town since it's the nearest town. If you want to find out more about yourself, maybe you should come with me and we'll find someone who can help you."

"You really think so?" Terron said in wonder.

"Well, only one way to find out," Zekra said. "Besides, where will you go anyway if you don't go there? There's nothing else out here that you want to go to. Just a bunch of grass. Lots of grass that goes on forever unless you go far east. Far, far east…"

Terron considered this for a moment. He could wander by himself as he originally intended and figure out what had happened to him, but hearing Zekra's words made him rethink his plans since he didn't want to get lost. He looked over at the Zorua that was beginning to fall asleep and pondered.

"Alright, I'll come with you," Terron finally decided. "I could use a guide and you seem pretty knowledgeable about this place."

"Okay," Zekra said with a small smile. "We'll leave in the morning. Good night, Terron."

And with that the little fox fell asleep in the grass. Terron chose to stay awake though and looked up at the sky high above. There wasn't a cloud to block the view of stars scattered throughout the sky like dust, each star having the brightness of the moon. Despite being millions of miles away the stars seemed so close that Terron felt he could reach them if he had wings.

He fell onto his back as he continued to stargaze. He wondered if perhaps one of those stars was where he came from. A place that was so close to him right now, yet so far away. He looked at the brightest star he could find before putting his hands in front of his face and pretending to cup his paws around the star as if to catch it.

_Where did I come from?_ Terron wondered in his thoughts. _And why am I here now as a Cubone? Was I chosen to do something perhaps? Was all of this prearranged to happen?_

He looked over at Zekra, who was sleeping quietly a few feet away. She seemed at peace.

_Am I really going to stay with this Zorua after she takes me to Aurora Town?_ Terron continued. _Sure I said I'd go with her since she knows how to get to civilization, but do I really need to be with her after that? I can take care of myself. I'm sure I can find the answers about who I am on my own. I'll just have to figure out how to tell Zekra that. It is pretty strange though how she immediately wanted to help me. Why would she want to help me? I'm nobody important to her. We barely met for five minutes and she already acts like we're friends…_

Before Terron could think much further, he felt something furry snuggling against his side. He turned his head to find that Zekra was asleep beside him now. It seemed that she had wandered over to him while he was meditating on his thoughts. Unlike how he last saw her though, she had pained expression fixed into her as if she was having a nightmare. Terron could feel her nuzzling into him as she tried to find comfort from whatever was giving her grief.

Terron shook his head with an agitated sigh, but he didn't push Zekra away. He found he couldn't do it since he did feel pity for whatever was making Zekra suffer. He let the Zorua stay with him as he tried to relax so he could go to sleep soon.

After staring up at the stars for a few minutes, Terron finally went to sleep.


	3. Chapter 2: The First Dungeon

**Chapter 2**

**The First Dungeon**

* * *

Sometime the next morning when the shade of Terron's tree was no longer covering him, the warm rays of the sun shined down on his eyes. The brightness of the sudden light behind his eyes caused him to stir until he awoke. He found that he was still a Cubone and still was without a mask.

Terron rubbed the tired out of his eyes as he looked around him only to find that his companion wasn't by his side anymore. In fact, Zekra wasn't anywhere in sight. The only sign that she was ever with him was the slightly flattened grass beside him that fit her form. A quick jolt of panic overcame Terron at the thought that he was alone, but it passed just as quickly. He sat up from where he lay and took in the now-visible scenery of the Gray Lands.

Everything was nearly identical to how it looked at night, except the colors were more vibrant and the atmosphere was much more pleasant. With the cover of darkness gone, Terron could see that the land he stood in stretched out seemingly endlessly in all directions like a sea of grass. All directions, that is, except two of them. The direction in which Terron was facing only seemed to go on for a few miles, or so it appeared, before it turned into a much browner area. Just beyond that, there was a distant mountain looming in the background.

The other direction, the one behind Terron, also seemed to go on forever just as the other directions did. However, after gazing into the distance for a moment, he was able to see that there was an actual ending to the eternal grassland on this side. Very faintly the Cubone could see the hazy outline of what appeared to be buildings and a few trees. It was so far away, though. It had to be at least a three-day journey to get there on foot.

"We'd better be going toward the mountain," Terron muttered to himself after comparing the distances.

He got to his feet and began to walk around the field in search of Zekra. The grass felt warm and pleasant against his feet as he treaded through silently. The grass got taller at various points so that in would begin to rise to his stomach, but it wasn't particularly bothersome. After roaming a few minutes away from the tree, Terron eventually came across something other than endless green. He stopped and hid behind nearby tall grass before peeking out. A few feet away were a couple of Rattata munching on some flowers in an open space where no grass grew. They seemed mostly docile as they ate, not making much noise save for the chewing sounds.

_Guess there are Pokémon that live around here._ Terron thought. _Wonder if these ones talk like Zekra does …_

The Cubone was about to speak to the rodents, but it was then that he noticed something else. There was a pair of eyes hidden behind some tall plants near the Rattata. They were a light blue color with white pupils. They seemed to be staring at the Rattata with a hunter's gaze.

In a quick instant, a dark blur shot out of the grass where the eyes were, and the sounds of paws landing on the ground filled the air. The Rattata grew alarmed and started to run away, but found that their tails were being held down by the feet of what had been stalking them; it was Zekra.

The Rattata screeched in panic and tried to fight back. One of them jumped toward Zekra despite having its tail being held down, but Zekra quickly snapped her jaws around its body. With a loud crunch, her fangs sank into its flesh and instantly killed the small Pokémon. She dropped the corpse to the ground before lunging her head at the other Rattata. Terron watched with wide eyes as Zekra killed the creature just as quickly as she did with the first.

She spit out the dead mouse from her muzzle as she finally released the two tails from her grasp. She began to clean herself from the blood splattered on her face.

"You can come out now," Zekra said calmly as she licked her paws of the blood. "Breakfast is ready."

Terron was taken aback by her knowing he was there, but he made no attempt to hide anymore. He came out of his hiding spot and joined her with the corpses with an unsure expression on his face.

"How'd you know I was there?" Terron asked.

"It's what happens when you're a hunter," she replied. "After all, how else would we find our food?"

"You eat other Pokémon?" the Cubone asked in slight surprise, finding that to be a hard truth to accept since he always thought all Pokémon were herbivores of sorts.

"Well not all of the time, but yeah I do," Zekra answered as she took one of the mice and started to tear off bits of its flesh. "But don't worry; I only eat wild Pokémon. I don't eat anyone who talks. That would be wrong if I did."

She took the other mouse and slid it over to Terron.

"Here, eat this," she insisted. "I know you'd probably prefer something like berries, but there aren't any around here. But you should still like it since I heard Cubone like meat as well."

"No way!" Terron said in disgust before kicking the corpse back over to Zekra. "I'm not eating another Pokémon! That's messed up in so many ways I can't even explain!"

Zekra finished the first Rattata that was now nothing but a hollowed out corpse with a few bones sticking out of its body. She then took the second Rattata and slid it back over to her with a somewhat disappointed expression.

"Fine, if you say so," she said. "But we've got a ways to travel. So I'll save this for you just in case you change your mind in the next few hours."

"I'm not eating that no matter what," Terron said sternly.

"Well you might if you get hungry enough," Zekra replied with a shrug.

She grabbed the mouse with her teeth to carry it before she stood up and looked out toward the direction that was opposite of where the mountain was.

"Alright, that's the way to Aurora Town," Zekra said through the mouse in her teeth. "And from what I remember, it'll take about the rest of today to get there. Judging that there aren't any weather problems." she noted, looking up at the partially cloudy sky.

"A whole day?!" Terron asked in disbelief. "You sure there isn't some faster way there? Or perhaps a closer city to go to?"

"There aren't any closer cities nearby, Terron," Zekra explained with a small amount of unease mixing with her voice. "So come on, let's get going. We can't stay here all day."

She began to walk forward a few feet into the grassland. She stopped after doing so and waited for Terron to come with her. Despite being agitated with the long travel distance, the Cubone understood that he didn't have much of a choice if he wanted to find civilization. He followed after Zekra and once he had caught up with her, the two began to walk side-by-side.

The journey so far was mostly easy and somewhat relaxing. There weren't any major inclines or declines in the area, nor were there any Pokémon that bothered to attack them. They had seen a few Pokémon running through the land on occasion such as a wandering Sentret or a group of Hoppip floating through the air, but none had attacked them. All they did was give a sideward glance to the duo before simply going back to their own business. Terron would glance at them at times to see if they'd try to communicate with him and Zekra out of curiosity. However, despite what Terron was wondering, he never saw any of them talk. They all made strange animal-like noises that didn't even remotely resemble words.

"Hey, Zekra," Terron said as he looked over at the Zorua.

"Yeah, what is it?" Zekra replied.

"How come none of the other Pokémon around here talk?" Terron asked curiously. "I thought that in this world all Pokémon talk, but whenever I see any Pokémon around here, they never say anything I can understand."

"Oh, well, that's simple to answer," Zekra said before taking the Rattata from her mouth and beginning to sever it with her teeth. "Just let me finish this first so you can hear me clearly. Unless you want it now."

"No," the Cubone said with a sharp edge in his voice.

"Fine, you had your chance. Don't complain if you get hungry and there's nothing to eat," Zekra said as she stopped to put the mouse on the ground and began tearing out the meat. "Tastes pretty good to me. Would have been better if they were skinned and gutted out though. And maybe roasted just a bit."

Terron almost wanted to vomit from the way she described wanting her food and the sounds of the chewing, but he instead looked away. He waited for her to finish the meal and watched a small flock of Pidgeotto and Pidgeot flying over their heads in the direction where they were going. He wanted to call out to them and ask for a ride to the city they were heading to. It would make traveling much easier for him and Zekra. But before he could ponder much in the idea, Zekra had finished her meal and was already speaking to him.

"So anyway, about your question with how come the Pokémon here aren't talking to us," she began to explain. "Well, how do I put this in a way you'd understand... there are two kinds of Pokémon I guess you can say. There are ones like me where we can talk and we're very 'human' as you might think. We communicate pretty well, we live together in civilizations, and we all know how to cooperate with one another to get things done. In that way, we're not so different from humans aside from having more special abilities. Then there's another kind of Pokémon we call the 'wild' Pokémon. You've seen them around here. They don't talk like us since they don't know _how_ to talk. They prefer living outside of civilization and in places like this. I'm sure some of them work together like in packs since natural instinct tells everyone to do that, but otherwise I don't know much about them. So yeah, that's your answer."

"What happens if you try to talk to them then?" Terron asked curiously, that idea of flying to the city still fresh in his mind.

"Usually they ignore you if we're in the regular wild areas of the land," Zekra said. "But sometimes, there are places where they're much more aggressive and if they know you're there, then they'll attack you since they're incredibly territorial."

"I see. And what places are these where they'll attack you?" Terron asked. "Seems a bit odd how a place can make somebody more hostile."

"Um, I'll tell you when we run into one," Zekra replied hesitantly. "They're hard to explain."

Terron gave a simple nod in reply as the two continued to venture through the endless sea of grass. However, no matter how long they went on walking, Terron couldn't tell if they were getting any closer to their destination. The end of the field never seemed to come into clear sight. To make matters worse, he was starting to get hungry. He looked around to see if he could spot some kind of fruit tree or bush, but there weren't any. The only kinds of vegetation growing were the blades of grass surrounding him and the occasional flower.

"You sure there aren't any sort of stores around here that sell food?" Terron grumbled.

"Yeah I'm sure," Zekra replied. "I mean, even if there were, we couldn't buy anything anyway. We don't have any money. But don't worry; we're almost to town. We've only got three more hours left or so."

"I don't know if I can last that long," the Cubone moaned as he held his stomach, which now groaned quietly.

"You're a Pokémon now," Zekra reassured. "Pokémon can last quite a while without food. Think of it as a survival mechanism."

Terron was doubtful of her words, but he didn't bother expressing his thoughts. He almost wanted her words to be truthful anyway. It at least gave some good news to being a Pokémon. He still wasn't quite used to being in this body despite it being close to a human's body structure.

After walking for a couple of hours, Zekra and Terron finally came to the end of the Gray Lands before it dipped into a more vegetated area that had more than just grass growing. They expected to look below and see the city before them, but to their surprise they found something else. The town was in sight, bordering near what looked like a river, but there was something between the town and where they stood now.

There was a forest.

However, from where the two stood, this forest seemed to be more like a wall than a few trees scattered around. The sun was beginning to set over the horizon and it caused the shadows of the outer trees to stretch outward toward the two in a somewhat eerie fashion.

"I don't remember anyone ever mentioning that there was a forest in front of Aurora Town," Zekra said in a puzzled tone. "Strange..."

She began descending down toward the forest so that she could get a better look. Terron followed after her, though he took longer to get down the incline since he only had two feet to balance himself. Once he managed to join up with the Zorua, the two stood in front of the entrance and stared at it with wonder. Now that they were up close, they could see how all the plants within seemed to be in a state between living and dying. All the trees' branches were drooping strangely as if wilting even though many leaves sprouted from them. The barks were peeling off the trees in a sickly manner and the grass lining the floor seemed unnaturally taller and gnarled than normal. Terron could feel an ominous atmosphere leaking out of there, but he did his best to not let it bother him.

"I think I know what this place is," Zekra said as she peered deeper into the forest. "It would explain why everything looks this way."

"And what would that be?" Terron asked.

"Sometimes an ordinary environment gets corrupted by some unknown presence," the Zorua explained. "A disease if you want to call it that. When it takes over that place, it warps it into a place we call a Mystery Dungeon. I've never been in one in my life, but some of my friends have been inside of places like these and told me a little about them. I don't know what turns places into these Mystery Dungeons or why, but I do know that it changes a lot of things on the inside. But, perhaps it's better to show you what I mean since we have to go through here anyway if we want to get to Aurora Town."

"Are you sure that's such a good idea?" Terron asked suspiciously, not liking how it was near dark and how'd they have to travel through there at this time.

"Well, it won't take long," Zekra assured him. "And if we don't go through here now, we're not going to be able to get into the city unless somebody happens to go through here from the other side. That's not going to happen any time soon. So just trust me on this."

The Cubone stared at his companion's smile and then back at the entry of the forest. The light was starting to disappear from the sky and he could tell that he needed to make the choice soon unless he wanted to spend another night sleeping outside.

"Fine," he said. "Lead the way."

Zekra nodded as she made her way into the Mystery Dungeon with Terron cautiously following behind her.

* * *

**Wayward Woods S1**

As soon as Terron and Zekra wandered into the forest, the Cubone immediately heard the sounds of branches snapping and leaves rustling. He quickly turned around just in time to see that the entrance they had just come through was slowly being covered up by a thick web of branches. Terron rushed over to the area slowly being patched up and attempted to escape by pulling away the slithering branches, but he was blown backwards by a whipping branch. The blow left a stinging pain on his skin, but he ignored that as he watched the last bits of the outside world close before his eyes behind the living plants.

"Terron! Are you okay?" Zekra asked worriedly as she came over to him.

"I'm fine," he said distractedly as he continued to stare at the now sealed entrance. "But what was that? It almost seemed like the forest was alive for a second. Is it trying to trap us in here?"

"Well, in a way it was," the Zorua said hesitantly. "You see... once you enter a Mystery Dungeon, you can't go out the way you came in. You have to find the exit in order to get out."

"And what happens if you don't find the exit?" Terron then asked.

"... I think it's best you don't know that," Zekra said quietly. "But trust me; we'll be fine. It's not hard to get through these places. And this Mystery Dungeon seems pretty short."

Terron glared at her for not telling him what he wanted, but he didn't bother arguing. He wanted to get out of the forest since the sun was starting to disappear over the horizon already. He looked out toward the forest and could see now that it had many grassy paths to choose from. Each one seemed to stretch to different areas of the forest that were beyond his sights.

"How do we know which way to go?" Terron asked as he pointed to the trails.

"Oh, you just pick a way to go and follow it," the Zorua answered. "And if you're lucky, it'll take you to the next area of the Mystery Dungeon. However, if not, we'll just end up right back where we started. Then we'll just take another path."

She saw the skepticism in the Cubone's eyes.

"Honestly, I don't really know much about these places either," Zekra said with a shrug. "I mean, I just know that's how you get out. My friends didn't teach me everything about these places. I was just taught what dungeons basically were and how to leave in case I got stuck in one, but no one really told me anything else. So basically… just try keep taking paths until you get out. That's all I can think of. I mean, I learned a couple of other basic things about Mystery Dungeons, but… "

"Just get us out of here," Terron said in a deadpan.

"Fine, this way."

Zekra lead Terron to the place with the multiple paths and after a bit of debating, they chose the one on the far right side. As they trailed through it, Terron could hear the sounds of hooting in the distance and felt like somebody was watching him from every direction. It made him feel incredibly paranoid and it didn't help that it was getting hard to see where he was going due to the night overtaking the dungeon.

"How are we supposed to see?" Terron asked as he anxiously eyed everything around him.

"Well I can kind tell where we're going, so we'll be okay," Zekra's faint outline said calmly. "But if it makes you feel any better, we can stand really close together so that you can still tell you're not alone. Works with my friends."

"Fine," the Cubone said.

He felt Zekra's fur rub against his side as the two began walking in sync and while Terron didn't want to admit it, he did feel a bit more secure now. However, his peace didn't last long. A couple of minutes later, the sounds of loud hooting filled the air as something could be heard flying nearby. Terron felt Zekra stop, which caused him to do the same. He could hear her growling quietly under her breath.

"Another thing you should know about Mystery Dungeons," Zekra said in a hushed voice. "There's wild Pokémon living in these places as well. But unlike the ones we saw at the Gray Lands, these kind of wild Pokémon are the ones that attack you as soon as they see you. They're the more aggressive ones I told you about. The dungeon not only corrupts the environment here, but also the Pokémon, so that their vicious traits are amplified. At least, that's what I was also told in a short amount of time. And right now, I'm pretty sure we're being attacked by one of them."

Without warning, something started to fly toward them while making loud screeching sounds. Zekra jumped away from Terron as the creature came near and its large red eyes came into view. It was a Hoothoot, glaring maliciously at Terron as it prepared to strike him. Terron tried to run away, but he found he couldn't move from the spot.

"Get away from him!" Zekra's voice shouted.

Zekra leaped into the air and rammed herself into the Hoothoot's side. The two fell to the ground with loud thumps, but the Hoothoot attempted to counter by pecking Zekra's face with its beak. The Zorua winced back from the pain, but she didn't cease her assault.

Small claws grew out of her paw before she swiped at the bird's face so that it left three lines of cuts. She continued to scratch at the bird as it tried to attack her again while screeching loudly, but it wasn't given the chance. Zekra raised her left paw before she slammed it down on the Hoothoot's head with as much force as she could muster.

The Hoothoot's eyes rolled around for a few seconds until they closed and the bird fell backwards. A couple of low hooting sounds came out of its beak, and then the creature finally fell silent.

Terron slowly approached where he thought Zekra was from the sounds of her panting softly from her brawl with the Pokémon. Once he came over to her, he looked down at the body of the Hoothoot which was vaguely visible in the darkness.

"Did you kill it?" Terron asked as he nudged the body of the Hoothoot with his foot.

It flinched for a brief second but otherwise the bird remained still.

"No, it's not dead," Zekra answered. "It's just unconscious. It takes a lot more effort to kill Pokémon as you saw me do once. But that's what you have to do here. They'll fight you no matter what, so you have to do the same to survive."

"But I don't know how to fight," Terron said awkwardly.

"It's easy!" the Zorua said as she retracted her claws back into her paws. "Just listen to your instincts and they'll tell you what to do. Though I suppose for you, you'll need some kind of bone. Hmmmmm..."

Her eyes started wandering to the Hoothoot as an idea started forming in her mind. Terron immediately understood what she was thinking about doing.

"Are you really going to…" he tried to say.

"Well we _are_ in a Mystery Dungeon and you might need to defend yourself. Sooooooo..." Zekra said in a rather casual tone despite how sickening it made Terron feel.

He shut his eyes and covered his ears so that he wouldn't have to witness what Zekra did to the wild Pokémon. He could hear muffled screeching before they were silenced, followed by the sounds of something being torn apart, but he didn't dare watch. When it was finally done though, he felt Zekra hand him a bone that was licked clean.

It didn't have the club-like shape a normal Cubone weapon had, but rather one that had the appearance of a slightly warped stick with dull edges. It was a little smaller than he would have felt comfortable, but it fit well in his hands. He swung it around in slow motions for a couple of seconds to get a feel of the new weapon. A strange sense of power came over him even though Terron didn't know where such a feeling came from.

"What part of the Hoothoot did you get this from anyway?" Terron asked, wondering how this fit inside of such a round Pokémon.

"It was in the legs I think," Zekra said as she stood in front of the corpse so Terron wouldn't have to see it. "How is it?"

"Good, just a bit hollow is all. Think that could be a problem," he replied as he gently twirled around the weapon.

"Well it's temporary, so don't worry about it," Zekra said with a shrug. "Now let's get going. Think we're at the end of this area."

Terron followed after the Zorua as the two came to the ending of their chosen path and found that the next area of the forest was in sight. It had turned out that they had taken the correct path on their first try. The two exchanged a victorious smile before going into the new section that lay deeper into the Mystery Dungeon.

* * *

**Wayward Woods S2**

The Mystery Dungeon seemed darker now when compared to the area they had just left. Somehow the moon seemed to shine less through the trees that only got thicker here and a thin haze of fog was spread across the flooring of the forest like a blanket. Terron and Zekra stopped in front of the various paths and picked the first path that came to their sights. As they headed down it, Terron kept his mind occupied by playing with his bone club. He found himself fascinated by it despite how dull it must have looked to anyone else.

"You know, it's probably a good idea to pay attention to where we're going," Zekra warned. "You have to watch out for the Pokémon."

"Yeah yeah, I know," Terron said carelessly. "But you seemed to be able to take care of the Pokémon here. Shouldn't be much of a problem if we run into any others."

Zekra shook her head in disbelief, but she kept her eyes on the path ahead of them. Eventually Terron stopped playing with his weapon and instead used it so that he and Zekra wouldn't get separated from one another. He would hold onto one end of the bone and she would hold the other in her maw. It worked about as well as their earlier idea in staying together, but Terron liked this idea better since he didn't have to be as close with Zekra. He was after all still thinking about what he'd do once he got to Aurora Town. He doubted that he would stick with Zekra since he wouldn't need to be with her anymore.

A few minutes of peace passed by and the duo were disappointed to find that they had come back to the beginning of this particular section. They had taken the wrong path, but thankfully they didn't have to start the whole dungeon over. Terron sighed in disappointment.

"Alright, pick a new path," Zekra said as she pointed to the three other paths that hadn't been traveled by them yet.

"Why me?" the Cubone asked.

"Because you picked the right path last time, so maybe you can do it again!" she replied optimistically.

"I seriously doubt that I have good luck in picking the right way to get out of here," Terron said bitterly as he walked up to the middle road of the three choices. "But if you insist. This way."

* * *

**Wayward Woods S3**

Only a few minutes passed before the two came to the next area of the dungeon with Zekra smirking and Terron simply muttering to himself. As they walked forward, a new wonder came to their sights that hadn't been seen before. A dim yet noticeable light was shining in the distance where all of the paths seemed to head into. It was like a star calling out to them from such a faraway distance.

Yet to Terron this light seemed so welcoming despite how faint and weak it felt. Compared to the ominous atmosphere of the dungeon, this particular sight cast a warm, pleasant feeling inside of him. It was like being able to witness the dawn's rising sun after dwelling in the night for so long.

"I think this is the last area of the Mystery Dungeon," Zekra then said. "That light must be the exit since there haven't been any others around here."

"So all we have to do is just pick one more right path and then we're out of here?" Terron said with a hint of excitement in his voice.

"Well that's what I think," Zekra said with a shrug. "Seems logical."

"Good, because I'm starting to get really hungry," the Cubone said as he uncomfortably looked at his stomach. "I've been trying to hold it off, but it's getting even worse since we came here."

"I've heard that Mystery Dungeons are like that," Zekra replied. "I guess since you heal faster in these places, you consume energy faster and then that would mean you'd have to eat more to make up for that energy lost. Makes sense."

"Yeah, whatever. Let's just keep going," Terron said hurriedly.

He began walking ahead of Zekra toward one of the paths as he held his gut while it grumbled. He didn't know how much longer he could afford to not eat, but he was determined to get out of this place before he died of starvation. He wasn't going to die in a place like this. Thoughts of food lingered heavily in Terron's mind and continued to haunt him like bad nightmares.

Terron was in the middle of fighting off thoughts about eating a mountain full of berries when he suddenly noticed something in front of the path in the dim lighting. He came to a halt and felt his grip around his weapon subconsciously tighten. A few feet in front of him was a large web that spread from one side of the trail to the other and clung to the trees that grew there. No Pokémon inhabited the web nor were there any sort of cocoons that might have been previous prey. Terron found this to be odd and continued to stare at it from his distance. It was then that Zekra caught up with him and saw the web as well.

"Hey, this is a Spinarak web," she said in realization. "I've seen these a couple of times. Surprised that no one is here though. They're usually always occupied by the one who makes them."

"Maybe they abandoned this web for another one since they weren't catching anything," Terron suggested.

"Well maybe, but let's try going back and pick a different path," Zekra suggested. "I don't think we can knock down this web or get around it."

The two turned around and began to head back to the beginning of the section, but Terron couldn't help but feel that something was watching him from behind. He looked over his shoulder and expected a pair of eyes looking back at him, but there were none. All that was there were just the empty web and the vacant trees surrounding the sides of the path. Figuring he was being paranoid, Terron shrugged it off and continued his way back up the path in silence.

Eventually he came back to the beginning of the trail and overlooked the other ways. He tried to see if he could spot any other Spinarak webs blocking anymore paths from where he stood, but there weren't any in sight. If there were any more however, they would have to be more towards the end.

Without further ado, the Cubone chose the path to the right of his previous path and made his way toward the light. Everything was easier to see now since he was closer to the light. There were no webs in his way this time, much to his relief, but just as he felt he was getting close to the end of road, a Venonat suddenly jumped out of one of the trees and landed in front of him. Its large compound eyes gleamed dangerously as it looked down upon Terron. The Cubone glared up at the large bug that towered over him as he slowly held the bone out in front of him and pointed it at the Venonat.

"Get out of the way," he said to it venomously.

"_Ping?"_ it asked in response with an incredibly high pitched voice.

Its speech resembled that of a distorted radar.

"I don't have time to deal with you," Terron said again. "I need to get out of here. So move aside."

Terron was expecting Zekra to attack the Venonat as she had with the last wild Pokémon he encountered, but surprisingly she wasn't responding. In fact, she hadn't said anything since Terron had left the Spinarak web with her. It seemed a bit odd for her personality since she was so cheery. Terron put those thoughts though. She was probably staying back to get Terron to learn how to fight. If Zekra was doing this to get him to battle this Venonat, then so be it. It looked like this was the only way to get around the bug anyway.

_Just listen to your instincts… _Terron mentally repeated to himself. _They'll tell you what to do. But what does that even mean? I'm a human and a Pokémon. Human instincts and Pokémon instincts aren't the same thing. How do I know whether my human instincts or so called Pokémon instincts are talking?_

"_PIIIIING!"_ the wild Venonat shouted shrilly as it shot itself forward at Terron.

_**MOVE!**_ a thunderous and powerful voice shouted from inside of Terron's head.

Terron was so startled by the sudden shout that he jumped to the side out of reaction. Since he had moved just in time, Terron managed to avoid the oncoming assault, but he could still feel the Pokémon's fuzzy body brush against him. Particles of purple dust flew off the bug and were about to settle on Terron, but he got out of the way before they could come in contact with him.

_Just what was that?! _Terron thought. _Who's voice was that? What's it doing in my head?_

Suddenly, a multi-colored beam shot out of nowhere and struck Terron in the side in his moment of confusion. The Cubone tumbled backwards a few feet from the hit before he crashed into a tree. His side was throbbing with pain, but he couldn't focus on that. He could see the Venonat standing on its two feet with its eyes glowing from the attack it had just sent at him. When it noticed that Terron was no longer flying out of control, the Venonat bounded toward him with its fangs ready to bite down upon him.

_**GET UP AND STRIKE BACK**__! _the voice in Terron's head cried again.

Terron flinched at the unexpected yelling within his mind, but he took no time to think about it. His thoughts became the words that were barked out at him and soon his actions.

Terron clutched the bone tightly in his hand. With one swift motion, he rose to his feet and smacked the Venonat with the weapon, just as the bug leaped at him. The Venonat's face it was visibly dented from the attack, and the foe was blown backwards into the distance. He could hear its shrieks as it flew through the air with its eyes flashing rapidly in fear and confusion. Terron smirked victoriously as the Venonat smacked into the ground seconds later with a thud. His side hurt from the attack he had received, but he didn't let it bother him. He slowly approached the weakly flailing form of the wild Pokémon until he was standing over it. Its eyes were staring up at him with a blank expression as if it was on the borderline between consciousness and fainting, unable to understand and interact with the world around it.

_**FINISH IT!**_

Terron raised his club above his head and brought it down upon the bug with all the strength he could. The Venonat let out a loud screeching sound just as the bone was to beat down upon its body. The wild Pokémon filled the air with its dreadful noise until it was abruptly silenced by the strike. Its eyes dimmed slowly until there was nothing that showed life behind them and the body went completely limp. It would wake up eventually, but for now it was out of its misery.

Terron sighed in relief as he fell into a sitting position. He needed a moment to recover from that attack he had received. He wondered about whose voice was speaking to him and ordering him throughout the fight, but he took his mind off that for now. He could worry about that later.

"There, I defeated a wild Pokémon," the Cubone said to Zekra without looking at her. "Guess it's not so hard after all."

There wasn't a reply from Zekra. Terron assumed that Zekra didn't think what he did was adequate enough.

"I did what you wanted, okay?" Terron said in a flustered tone. "Don't I get some kind of congratulations? You try fighting after you've been put into a new body without your consent."

There was still nothing to be said. Annoyed with his companion at her insensitivity, he turned around to lash out at her about the way she was acting.

But Zekra wasn't there. She was nowhere in sight.

Terron's eyes grew a tiny bit as he got to his feet and started looking around in every direction he could. He could have sworn Zekra was with him. She was right behind him this whole time! They had been traveling together!

"Zekra? Where are you?" Terron called out loudly as he began wandering to the sides of the path. "Zekra?! ZEKRA!"

His heart thudded violently in his chest and his breath shortened drastically. Everything around him started to become disoriented as hysteria began to ensue within his mind. Yet, despite the massive chaos erupting through his mind, one truth began to manifest itself to him.

Zekra had disappeared and he was alone.


	4. Chapter 3: Tangled by the Webs

**Chapter 3**

**Tangled by the Webs**

* * *

**Wayward Woods S3 (still)**

Terron felt his hands tremble as the epiphany dawned upon him: somehow, Zekra had gone missing.

Immediately, his mind began racing, fearing the worst. Had she gotten captured during a battle, when he wasn't looking? Had he left her behind long ago? His breath caught as he realized that he didn't remember the last time he had actually seen her.

Terron wasn't incredibly fond of Zekra, but he dreaded the thought of her being here alone in this hostile environment. He was worried for his own well-being of course, but Zekra's seemed more important right now. She may have been experienced, but being alone in a world filled with dangerous creatures was a terrible situation to be in.

"TERROOOON!" a familiar voice screamed in the distance.

Terron's panicking immediately ceased as he looked up toward the source of the noise. It was coming from another path in the area. Zekra hadn't disappeared after all. She was still around and Terron could still get to her. Hope quickly sprouted in Terron's heart. It became the energy that allowed him to get up in an instant and hurry back up the path toward the beginning of the current section. Now he just had to figure out which path the shouting was coming from.

"Where are you?!" Terron yelled into all of the trails in hopes that Zekra would answer back.

His yells echoed through the woods for a few seconds as the entire forest became silent as if listening to his cries. Terron worried that Zekra couldn't hear him for a moment, but thankfully the voice of Zekra answered before the dread could once again take hold of him.

"By the Spinarak web you saw earlier!" her voice shouted.

Terron took no time to answer back and made his way to the first path he and Zekra had taken when they first entered this area. Any thoughts about the pain in his stomach from lack of food or the stinging pain from his battle were ignored. All of his senses were focused on finding Zekra. He didn't even feel the grass beneath his feet as he sprinted as fast as he could toward the web he had visited earlier.

When he managed to get to the web, though, Terron came to a horrifying sight. He immediately skidded to a halt a few feet in front of the web as he made sure that what he was seeing was real. Zekra was in the middle of the web and wrapped up in a tight cocoon that covered all of her body except her head. She was thrashing around and attempting to bite herself free from the prison, but it was to no avail. She was stuck in her silky prison.

Why she didn't try to transform to escape though, Terron wasn't sure. He could only imagine it was because she was too terrified to think rationally. Her panic could possibly be hindering her abilities.

Surrounding her were three Spinarak that all clicked their pincers eagerly. From what could be seen, it looked as though they had wrapped her fairly recently and they were just about to inject her with their poison. Then, they'd no doubt suck out her internal organs after she had died.

"Terron!" Zekra said in a strange mix of desperation and excitement to see him.

_**MOVE! **_ the fierce voice in Terron's mind barked.

"What?" Terron muttered to himself in confusion. "It's the voice... what does it-"

"Look out, Terron!" Zekra shouted frantically.

A strand of sticky silk struck the Cubone's free arm that didn't hold his weapon and began to wrap itself around his arm. It quickly formed a small cast-like prison around his arm. Before it could spread further though, Terron moved out of the line of fire and looked up toward its source. There, in a tree branch high above him, was a Spinarak with its eyes set on the Cubone. It was trying to do the same thing the others had done to Zekra.

The Spinarak snapped its pincers together a few times and fired an array of small purple darts at Terron. The Cubone was quick to move though and rolled out of the way of the incoming projectiles. The Spinarak countered this by continuing to face toward the Cubone and fired more of its poisonous needles that came in endless amounts. Terron ran around the trail as he attempted to dodge each and every projectile that came his way, but a few did manage to hit him since there were so many. Whenever they did hit, they always stung like little needles pricking his skin. Yet Terron continued to keep running despite the pain since he knew that if he did stopped, more pain would come.

He glanced over at Zekra as he avoided the sprays of darts and saw that the other Spinarak were starting to gather toward her. They were about to prepare her for their meal. A deep fear sunk into his heart that made him feel numb when he realized this. He couldn't let them eat her. But how could he get away from this Spinarak that was giving him problems? He couldn't reach it since it was so high up in the tree.

_**THROW YOUR WEAPON! **_

"What?" Terron said in confusion as he looked at the bone in his hand free of Spinarak webbing. "I don't think I have good aim. And what if I lose this? It's the only weapon I have."

_**THROW IT IF YOU WANT TO LIVE!**_

Terron saw that it was pointless to argue and allowed himself to submit to the commands of the voice. He held the bone in his hand tightly and then held it back. He threw it forward at a somewhat curved angle as his mind told him to. The bone soared through the air swiftly as it swung around in circles so quickly, that Terron didn't think it was him that threw it with his amateur skills. It flew toward the branch the Spinarak was sitting in and before the spider could react, the spinning weapon collided with its body. The spider fell to the ground from the sudden shock of the impact as the bone came swinging back to Terron as if it hadn't hit anything.

_**CATCH IT!**_

Terron's actions followed the orders without him even thinking about it. His hand held itself out to catch the oncoming weapon and before he knew it, the side of the bone came into his hand as his grip returned around the weapon. He could feel the dull thudding in his palm from catching such a fast moving object, but he didn't care. He looked over at Zekra to see that one of the spiders was about to sink its fangs into the Zorua as she squirmed around in an attempt to get away.

Terror filled her eyes.

The voice didn't need to tell him what to do.

He threw his bone forward at the Spinarak that was seconds away from injecting her with poison without a moment's hesitation. It immediately collided with the spider a second later and he watched as the spider fainted instantly upon having its head conked by the deadly weapon. The bone rebounded off of its unconscious body before coming back in Terron's hand. He felt the weapon crack in an area due to it being hollow and not being able to take the abuse it was sustaining. Thankfully, it was still useable, which was good for Terron since he still needed to use it to finish off two more Spinarak.

One of the Spinarak jumped off of the web and onto the ground to face Terron. The other one stayed with Zekra to act as a guard over their prey. Terron didn't care though; he'd take them both out in a matter of seconds. His grip around his weapon increased, causing the tiny sound of cracking to emit from the bone that only spread the fissure in it further.

The Spinarak on the ground glared at Terron for a few seconds as if in a stand-off with him before it shot a swarm of violet needles at Terron from its mouth. Terron was quick to react and jumped to the side just as the needles went past him. He started rushing toward the spider at this new angle. The Spinarak's eyes begin to shift toward him as he began to close in on the spider.

_**JUMP AND THROW YOUR WEAPON!**_

Terron nodded silently and pushed his feet against the ground, leaping into the air. His arm tossed the bone forward at the Spinarak so that it spun forward like a wheel. Just as he did that, the Spinarak brought its attack toward him. However, it was aimed more toward the ground since Terron had just jumped right when the spider had changed its line of fire. Terron watched as his weapon rapidly flew at the wild Pokémon until it struck its body right where the fake face was.

He listened to shrieking of the spider as it suffered the full impact of the attack. Its attack ceased as its legs gave out and fell to the grassy floor with a dull thump. The bone at once returned to Terron's paw. However, to ensure that the spider would no longer be fighting, Terron landed on the face sprawled on his foe's back and listened to its exoskeleton snap. The spider's head immediately hit the floor as the eyes grew dull. The Spinarak was still alive, if barely sow, as shown by the occasionally twitching pincers, but the state it was current in was good enough for Terron.

Terron stepped off the comatose form of his former target before locking his sights onto the last Spinarak with a deadly glare in his eyes. It returned the same expression to the Cubone and hissed quietly.

_**THUNK!**_

Terron felt the bone leave his hand, watched it smash into the spider's body, and then caught it as it came back to him.

It all happened within five seconds.

The spider was immediately knocked out, but it remained in its net since its legs were sprawled in complicated positions throughout the webbing. Despite this though, there were no more Spinarak. Terron and Zekra were safe.

For now.

Terron made his way over to the entangled Zorua until he was in front of the web. The adrenaline was leaving his system and he could feel his weariness coming back to him. He looked up at her with a somewhat exhausted, yet relieved expression. Despite being saved from the spiders, Zekra appeared to still be in a panic.

"Are you okay?" Terron asked, genuinely sounding worried.

"Y-Yeah," Zekra stuttered as she looked over at Terron. "I just really hate bugs… had some instances with them before… they're not fun. Get me down from here… please. Before more come."

"I'll try," Terron said unsurely.

He took the bone in his hand before using it to help bring Zekra down from where she lay trapped. He dragged her off the web and sent her tumbling onto the ground where she still remained in a cocoon. He was about to tear apart the bindings with his bare hands, but Zekra stopped him.

"No, you'll just get your hands all tangled up with the silk," Zekra warned. "You've got to find another way. But get me out of here! I don't like being trapped in here..."

Terron's eyes fell upon the bone in his hands upon hearing her say that. Though specifically, the ever growing cracks that were forming all throughout it. An idea started to form in his mind, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to sacrifice the only weapon he had.

His stomach then started to growl painfully. He realized that he had been so busy panicking and fighting that he had forgotten how hungry he had been. He felt that if he didn't have any food soon, he was going to die. Having this new factor enter his mind, he realized that perhaps it was better to do what came to mind rather than to go search for something else to free Zekra. If it meant getting out of the dungeon faster, he'd do it.

Without hesitation, Terron grabbed his weapon with his two hands on the opposite sides of the shaft and clutched them tightly. He then began to push his arms downward with as much strength as he could muster and started to hear the repeated sounds of cracking. He smiled as he watched the middle of the bone form a giant fracture until it gave way, snapping the bone into two pieces with jagged ends where they once connected. He dropped one of the pieces of the bone, taking the other and cutting into the cocoon holding Zekra with the sharp edge. He tore it straight down the middle from one end to the other and watched as the strands were easily torn apart and didn't stick to his hands.

Once he had cut the cocoon completely open, Terron pulled the bindings off of Zekra until she was free of her cocoon prison. Zekra shook off the residue lingering in her fur as she slowly got back to feet. She still seemed a bit shaken up from the experience, but she appeared to be recovering. As she took in deep breaths to help her do so, Terron used his fractured weapon to cut through the silk cast wrapped around his arm and removed it from him with ease.

"Thank you," Zekra said as she managed to muster up a small smile. "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't come... No, I really don't want to know."

Another agonizing rumble came from Terron's stomach, which caused him to wince.

"Yeah, you're welcome," Terron said hurriedly as he looked toward the exit of the path he was on. "But can we save it for later? I really need to find some food. So we need to get out of here."

"I think this way should get us out of here as long as we can get that Spinarak web out of the way," Zekra said as she pointed down the path. "I hope so, at least. I don't want to run into those Spinarak again..."

Without a moment to waste, Terron picked up the other piece of the bone he had split and put it into his other hand so that he was dual wielding two sharp pieces. He took the makeshift knives before cutting through a section of the web so that they could pass. Parts of the web had stuck to his bones, but Terron wasn't concerned about that. He wanted to get out of this dungeon as fast as he could. Once he had made a way through this blockade, he and Zekra then dashed toward the light at the end of the path.

* * *

**Aurora Town Outskirts**

Terron and Zekra ran out of an opening from the small forest and into a grove-like area filled with many trees that bore fruit. They panted heavily as they stopped to catch their breath, but Terron's desperation for food lead him to scampering toward some berries that had fallen on the ground. He grabbed a pink berry that had a heart-like shape before stuffing it in his mouth and swallowing it without even chewing it. An overwhelmingly sweet flavor spread throughout his maw, but he didn't pay any attention. He grabbed another of the same berry and scarfed it down, but immediately felt too overpowered by its sweetness to eat another of the same kind. He instead grabbed some small red berries on a vine that happened to be nearby and found those to be more satisfying to his tastes better. He then continued to eat all of those kinds of berries until his stomach felt full enough.

By the time Terron had eaten at least fifty berries non-stop, he felt sluggish and rested against the trunk of one of the trees. Zekra came over to see him finally calmed down and giggled at the sight of seeing berry juice smeared all over his face and paws.

"Looks like you were really hungry," Zekra said with a grin. "You feel better?"

"Yeah, a little," Terron replied. "I'm just glad there was food right outside of that Mystery Dungeon. I don't think I would have lasted much longer."

He yawned tiredly as he looked up at the moon. He almost forgot it was still night time.

"So what do we do now?" Terron asked. "Aurora Town is right there. Do we go there now?"

"Well everyone is most likely still asleep except for a few nocturnal Pokémon," Zekra answered as she looked out toward the town. "And we just got done with a lot of walking and battling. Maybe we should just call it a night and rest here."

"Yeah, let's do that. I'm falling asleep anyway," Terron said as the feeling of a full stomach lulled him to sleep.

Zekra plopped down on the grass a few feet away from the Cubone and got into a comfortable position before looking over at Terron with a small smile.

"Hey Terron?" she said as she rested her head in her paws.

"Yes?" the Cubone asked tiredly as he started falling asleep from where he was.

"Thank you for coming here with me," Zekra said brightly. "It means a lot to me. I didn't want to travel through those plains alone, honestly, so I'm really glad I found you. It's nice to have somebody with me after I escaped and everyone in town d-"

Zekra's words suddenly cut off. Terron looked at her and saw she had a pained, yet distant expression in her eyes as if she were in some other world. He reached over and began nudging her to snap her back into reality.

However, rather than respond to the shaking, Zekra fell asleep as her eyes closed. The pain was no longer apparent, but Terron knew that it was because the tiredness was masking it. Or, perhaps Zekra herself was masking the pain of whatever it was that she was suffering from. Maybe she was still thinking about the Spinarak incident. He gave a melancholy sigh before he found a good spot to rest in the grass nearby Zekra.

He was starting to realize now that perhaps his original idea of ditching Zekra after he got here wasn't a good idea anymore. He had been so afraid, so worried when he thought he had lost her in the Mystery Dungeon. He knew that he couldn't abandon her now without experiencing an overwhelming amount of sadness.

"See you in the morning," Terron said to Zekra even though he doubted she could hear him.

He looked at the Zorua one last time until he too fell asleep.

* * *

The next morning, Terron found himself in the exact same position he had slept in. He felt well rested when he awoke, but still a bit sore from all of the walking he had to do yesterday. He stretched his arms as he slowly got to his feet and looked over to his side to see how Zekra was.

She wasn't there, just like yesterday morning. Terron figured she was getting breakfast for herself, so he didn't think much on it. He went around the trees in the grove and started gathering some more berries to eat for his breakfast since he had no intentions of eating Pokémon. He gathered mostly round, blue berries this time and as he ate them, he felt the soreness in his muscles go away. They had a strange taste to them that seemed to change from one flavor to the next every time he chewed them. However, he didn't mind this since it was at least making him feel physically better.

Mentally, Terron still felt odd about his situation and how his past felt like it was literally erased from his mind. Even his dreams couldn't offer him any sort of hints about his human days as they were filled with nothing but a blank void. While Terron tried to not to show it, it left a somewhat empty feeling in him as if he had been robbed of something vital.

_Today's the day Zekra and I go to Aurora Town and try and find somebody who can help me out. _Terron told himself. _I wonder what towns are like in this world... and the Pokémon as well. Are they all friendly and so open-minded like Zekra? Will anybody even listen to me if I ask about humans? As a matter of fact, how are Zekra and I going to figure out where to find some answers about myself? It's not like I can just walk up to some random Pokémon and ask them if they know anything about humans turning into Pokémon. No, that's just a good way for somebody to believe I'm crazy._

It was then that Terron noticed Zekra coming toward him with a couple of berries hanging from her mouth. He was incredibly grateful that it wasn't a Pokémon this time for the Zorua's meal.

"Good morning, Terron," Zekra said as she stopped in front of him and started eating the fruit she had.

"Hey," Terron said with a small wave. "How's it going?"

"Fine, just got myself some breakfast is all," Zekra replied. "I'm not normally one for berries, but it's okay for every once in a while. Figured I wouldn't go back into the Mystery Dungeon by myself and try to catch something to eat."

Terron tried very hard to keep the image of Zekra prowling through the forest in search of wild Pokémon out of his mind. To help with this, he decided to bring up what he had been pondering about.

"I was thinking about this earlier," Terron said with a somewhat reluctant expression on his face, "but how exactly are we going to find out answers about why I'm a Cubone? I mean, we can't just walk up to some random townsfolk and ask about humans when nobody talks about them like you said. It doesn't work like that."

"Huh, I didn't really think about that actually," Zekra admitted as she awkwardly rubbed her head. "Well, how about we just go into town and explore to see if there's maybe somebody there that can figure out why you got amnesia? Like some expert psychic-type who can search your mind for your lost memories?"

"There's Pokémon that can do that to my mind?" Terron asked as his eyes grew wide.

"Yeah," Zekra stated simply. "Not every psychic-type can do that, but some of them can. So how about we try that?"

The thought of somebody being able to invade his mind and look through everything was a bit unnerving to Terron. He didn't want all of his thoughts and memories being looked at by a complete stranger. However, as he looked at Zekra and saw how she was honestly trying to help him, he knew that it would probably be for the better. He needed answers and if this was the only way, then perhaps he'd better put his fears behind.

"Okay, fine," Terron said with a defeated sigh. "Just make sure they don't damage my brain somehow."

"I'll make sure of that," Zekra said smiling. "So let's get going. We're gonna have to do a bit of searching throughout town and it could take a while."

Terron nodded in agreement as he got up to his feet and the two began to walk towards town.

* * *

**Aurora Town**

Terron and Zekra stood at the entrance of their destination, which was the border between the grassy paths they had been travelling on for miles and the tan stone-paved paths that crept through the entire town. As Terron gazed into the town, he could see that all of the buildings were quite small and meant to resemble the heads of many Pokémon, or at least have the head somewhere on the building. It was a bit of strange sight since he could remember what human buildings looked like, which were always so tall and looked so alike to one another. Still, these had a nice charm to them. Trees occupied several areas of space within the city such as growing between various shops or even serving as homes by having tree houses built into them. Much of the town, in fact, seemed to be just a city built within a forest and worked with nature instead of demolishing everything. It was very unlike the mystery dungeon forest they had gone through. Many Pokémon were walking around town from what he could see, all different kinds of Pokémon. Everyone seemed nice and cheerful whenever they spoke with one another whether it be at shops or with one another, giving the entire atmosphere a peaceful feeling.

Terron looked over at Zekra and to his surprise, found that she wasn't smiling as she had been the whole time they were coming here. That faraway expression was in her eyes again.

"Is something bothering you?" Terron asked.

"Huh?" Zekra said as she seemed to come back to reality.

She then looked over at Terron and noticed him staring at her. She started to smile faintly.

"Oh, no it's fine. I was just thinking about something is all," she assured.

Terron knew she was lying and was going to question her, but he stopped himself. They had more important things to do. Plus, something inside of him didn't want to start any kind of emotionally charged conversations. He didn't know what or why, but it was keeping him away from the topic.

"Well, we're here," Terron said as he watched pedestrians go by. "So where do you suppose we start?"

"Let's try walking around a bit and see if we spot any kind of booths that have what we're looking," Zekra suggested. "Or at least any psychic Pokémon roaming around."

The two entered into town and immediately began searching for any sign of psychics. Terron didn't know what he was looking for since he didn't quite grasp the concept very well, but at least Zekra seemed to know. As they weaved through the crowds of Pokémon that filled the streets, Terron couldn't help but notice that they were all giving him odd glances since he lacked the trademark helmet of Cubone. They were very subtle such as a quick look at their side or staring back at him after he had passed by, but Terron could still feel their eyes. It was felt incredibly uncomfortable for him and he almost wanted to go back outside the city where no one was giving him those stares. However, he reminded himself of his intended task and pressed on while trying to ignore everybody else.

By the time Terron and Zekra got to the other side of the city, they still hadn't found anybody that seemed to be able to help. Instead, they found themselves sitting on the sidelines of the pathways nearby some shops that hardly anyone seemed to be visiting at the current moment. Terron played around with the two bone pieces he had held onto with a bored expression while Zekra appeared to be in a deep thought about something.

Moments of silence passed between them before Zekra finally spoke up.

"I know this is out of the way," Zekra said in an unusually shy tone, "but I did need to visit someplace around here. You're free to come with or just stay here, but I really need to go somewhere. I mean, we'll continue looking for somebody to help you when we're done with this little errand. It shouldn't take too long. That okay?"

"I suppose it's better than sitting around here," Terron shrugged carelessly before getting to his feet. "I'll come with. But where are we going to go?"

"You'll see when we get there," Zekra said.

The Zorua got up before she started walking back into the heart of town. Terron followed after her from behind and tried to figure out where they were going based on what buildings they were passing. Zekra was leading him down the side of town that went north geographically as opposed to the western and eastern sides they had traveled on earlier. There were lesser amounts of Pokémon here as there had been in the other areas of town, but at least nobody stared at Terron this time. They all seemed too much in a hurry for something.

Eventually Terron and Zekra found themselves in front of a building that was much different from all the others they had seen. Unlike all the others, this one wasn't in the shape of a Pokémon head. It was more rectangular in shape and seemed to be made out of some kind of stone. It was still one story tall as all the other buildings in the area however, and it lacked a door so that Pokémon could freely walk in and out of the building without too much of a problem. A large sign was plastered on the top of the building and written in a strange writing that seemed to be made of footprints, making Terron stare at it with a curious expression since he couldn't tell what it was supposed to say.

"What is this place?" Terron asked.

Zekra looked up at the sign for a moment and brought her gaze back at Terron. There was a dull expression in her eyes that was so unlike Zekra's normal eyes. It almost made Terron think he wasn't speaking to Zekra anymore.

"This is the Aurora Town Police Station," she said.

Without another word she walked into the building, leaving behind Terron. The Cubone found himself frozen on the spot, baffled by her words. Concepts of what the police were and what they did crept into Terron's thoughts.

_The police station?_ Terron said mentally as he stared into the building where Zekra had disappeared into. _Why would she need to go in there? Is she going to turn me in or something? Because I'm human and she secretly thinks I'm crazy so she wants to get rid of me? No, that can't be right!_

Without a second thought, Terron made his way into the building as well. As he made his way inside through the doorway, he accidentally bumped into an Ariados that happened to be walking out of the building.

"Sorry about that," the Ariados said with a male, elderly voice.

"It's fine," Terron said even though he was somewhat terrified of the spider since he was almost killed by a its pre-evolved forms yesterday.

"Say, I don't think I've seen you around here," the Ariados said as he stopped from outside the building to look at Terron. "Are you new around here?"

"Yeah, I am," Terron said quickly as he looked into the building to find Zekra.

It didn't take long to spot her. She was standing in front of a counter and speaking to an Electabuzz that was on the other side. Behind the Electabuzz were several file cabinets made of wood that took up most of the entire wall since there were at least a hundred of them. Pokémon could be seen in the background taking things out of these cabinets and also putting new things in before going about their normal business. However, Terron paid no attention to them and instead focused on Zekra and the Electabuzz.

"What brings you here?" the Electabuzz asked Zekra with a suspicious stare. "And who are you?"

"My name is Zekra and I've come to report something," Zekra answered seriously. "I come from a place east of here known as Blackoak Town. It's on the other side of the Grey Lands and nearby... Emerald Mountain. You've heard of that place haven't you?"

"Yes, some of the merchants in this town like to travel there since business flourishes over there if I recall correctly," the Electabuzz nodded. "Why?"

Zekra stared at the police officer for a while as an eerie silence came between the two. Terron had no idea what was bothering Zekra, but he choose to stay where he was and remain quiet. She was trying to get something done and didn't need his help.

At long last, Zekra finally spoke.

"Blackoak Town's citizens were all killed when they were evacuating their homes," Zekra said in a monotone, yet her voice seemed to crack at the last few words. "Everyone's gone... except me. I was the only one who made it out."

Terron's eyes grew as he watched Zekra hang her head depressingly at having to say all of that. He honestly hadn't expected that Zekra to be a survivor from such an event based on how happy she was. Yet despite how surprised Terron was, the Electabuzz didn't quite seem so.

"And how exactly did everybody die?" the officer asked.

"Everyone was going to come here," Zekra explained quietly, keeping her face hidden. "We were told that something was happening at Emerald Mountain that could pose as a serious threat even though they never explained what. So everyone started leaving and we were going through the cliffs that lead to the Grey Lands. And then that's when it happened..."

"That's when what happened?" the Electabuzz asked.

Terron saw Zekra trying to form words, but nothing came out of her mouth. She was shaking fearfully as her eyes seemed to widen in horror as if she were seeing things that others could not. Terron took no time to hesitate and immediately came to her side before attempting to bring her back to reality.

"Zekra! Snap out of it!" Terron urged. "Finish your story! Tell them what happened!"

"And who are you?" the Electabuzz asked indifferently.

"I'm Terron," he answered firmly despite finding it odd that he was for the first time referring to himself by his replacement name. "I'm Zekra's friend."

"But I thought that her entire town was destroyed by some unknown reason," the Electabuzz said suspiciously, noting the details Zekra had given him. "There aren't any towns between here and Blackoak that she could have met you at."

"I met her at-"

"There were so many of them..." Zekra's voice suddenly said.

Terron and the officer looked over at her to find that she was still in the same state she had been in previously. But somehow, it seemed much worse now.

"What?" Terron said slowly, not understanding what she was talking about.

"I saw what took away everybody," Zekra explained as her breathing started to shorten. "They were these things... these _**THINGS!**_ I don't know what they were, but they took everybody! They came out of nowhere and trapped everyone so that nobody could escape! They were like Pokémon, but there are no Pokémon that should look like that! They were like phantoms of normal Pokémon, but it's much worse than that! Whenever they stare at you, their eyes, their _**EYES**_ they burn into you! And they took everyone I knew from town away from me! _**EVERYONE****!**_ I don't even know how I lived... but everyone else is dead! I just wanted to come here to tell somebody that so that maybe somebody can stop them... I just want somebody to listen... somebody... anybody..."

Terron watched her breathe in heavily after saying all of that, having gone near hysteric just a second ago. He wanted to say something to her to get her to calm down, but he didn't know what. All he could do was watch and stare.

"So you're saying that there's this gang of Pokémon that are killing others?" the Electabuzz clarified, apparently not fazed by all of the information. "Hmmmmmmm... well, we'll see if we've heard of any sightings of that. So why don't you two kids go relax and come back another day and I'll tell you I anything new came?"

"Yeah, okay then," Terron said in a dissatisfied tone. "Guess we will. Come on Zekra, let's get going. Let's go find somewhere to stay for the night."

The Zorua nodded slowly as the two went outside. Once they had exited the police station, the two began to head back to the square in search of an inn to stay at. However, what neither of them noticed was that the Ariados that Terron had run into earlier had been standing near the doorway the whole time they had been talking to the Electabuzz. He had heard everything.

He watched the two disappear from his view. His thoughts became troubled.

"So they know," the Ariados whispered.

His eyes glanced around anxiously. His mind raced with possibilities of what to do. Many ideas rapidly swept past him, but it was only one that stood out the most. It would have to do. Once that was decided, he swiftly darted away to another section of town.

* * *

Hours had passed and Terron and Zekra were now resting in an inn that allowed them to stay for free since they had helped temporarily with some errands around the inn. They now lay in their beds that were made of nothing but hay in a mostly vacant room, both silent as could be. Terron was busy thinking about what had happened earlier and found himself simmering in anger at the thought of the police not helping them. Hadn't they seen that Zekra was being truthful? Couldn't they have done something better than say to come back in a few days?

Terron looked over at Zekra to find that she was attempting to fall asleep in her bed, but was unable to relax.

Knowing about what had happened to Zekra had completely changed how Terron looked at her now. She was no longer just somebody who was always smiling and helping Terron with his quest since she was a nice Pokémon. She was a lost soul, an orphan as Terron could very well assume, and was filled with pain that couldn't be mended instantly. It would take a long time to repair the damage brought upon her. Yet despite all of this, Terron still saw Zekra as his one friend in this world. He was sure that Zekra felt the same way about him.

Terron found this to be another reason for why he couldn't cut their friendship.

However, he couldn't bring up the subject no matter how hard he tried. He wanted to talk to Zekra about herself and try to find some way to help out, but he couldn't do it.

"Hey, Terron," Zekra called to him.

Terron looked over at her upon hearing her voice to find that she was staring at him. There was a somewhat more peaceful expression in her eyes now, but melancholy feelings still lingered.

"I'm sorry we couldn't find anybody to help you today," Zekra sighed. "We can try looking tomorrow though if you want."

"It's alright," Terron said. "I mean, today was a rough day. You don't have to worry about it."

There was quiet for a few minutes. It was apparent that Zekra wasn't going to talk about what was going on in her mind either. Perhaps it was better that way between the two of them. Terron sighed to release his pent-up frustration before he began to fall asleep in his bed.

"Sorry to bother you two at this hour," a new voice said out of the darkness.

Terron's eyes snapped open as he jolted up. He saw a figure standing at the window of the room that lead to the outside world. Through the pale moonlight that shined into the room, Terron was able to see that it was the same Ariados that he had met earlier at the police station. As soon as Zekra saw the Ariados, she jumped backwards a few feet.

"Who are you?" Zekra asked fearfully.

"I'm not allowed to answer that yet," the Ariados replied calmly. "But, what I can say is that I was sent here to find you two and that you're to come with me. There are some Pokémon who want to see you."

"Like who?" Terron questioned.

"Friends of mine," the Ariados said simply. "But I can't tell you anything other than that right now unless you agree to come. I can assure you though that you won't be harmed in any way. I don't like to harm others who haven't done anything wrong."

"I don't trust you, so there's no way I'm coming," Terron stated firmly.

"I'm not going either!" Zekra added defensively. "You can't just sneak into somebody's sleeping place and expect them to do whatever you want! That's not a good way of convincing somebody!"

The Ariados sighed in disappointment as he shook his head. When he looked back at the two Pokémon though, there was a strange look of reluctance in his eyes.

"I didn't want to have to take you two by force," the Ariados said. "But, I'm afraid that I'm not allowed to come back empty-handed."

Without warning, a white string of silk shot out of his mouth and zoomed toward Zekra and Terron. The two were about to run, but the single strand instantly spilt in several directions to form a giant web. The web swiftly fell over Terron and Zekra before it closed completely around them like a trap. Once they were sealed together in the webbing, the Ariados brought the two encased Pokémon to him by sucking the silk back into his mouth. He then cut off the end of the string where the webbing was once the two were next to him. The two squirmed around and shrieked in the webbing as they attempted to get out, but the Ariados didn't pay any attention to that. He put them on his back where they stuck thanks to the sticky substance of the silk.

Then in an instant, he disappeared out the window with the two in tow.

* * *

**? the Ariados **** ScytheRider**


	5. Chapter 4: Fellowship

**Chapter 4**

**Fellowship**

* * *

Terron and Zekra thrashed around in their web prison atop the Ariados' back in an attempt to break free, but it didn't matter. The webbing held fast. The more the two struggled, the more the silk stuck to their bodies and held them still. By the time the Ariados had escaped out the window of the room, Terron and Zekra were practically immobile from all the fighting they put up.

All they could do was watch as the enormous spider towed them off to an unknown location.

"What do you want with us?!" Zekra shouted as she attempted to get her paw free.

"It's not me who wants to see you." the Ariados explained dully. "And quit trying to escape; you'll only make matters worse for yourself."

The two wouldn't listen though and continued to fight against the webbing. Just as the arachnid had warned, their situation became worse and their mouths got covered in silk. The children tried to yell to call out for help, but all that came out of their mouths were muffled noises which nobody heard.

"Can't say I didn't warn you." the Ariados shrugged.

The spider took Terron and Zekra into the shadows in an attempt to hide them from the few Pokémon still outside that night. Once he had the cover of darkness, the Ariados continued walking with quiet steps.

Just then, an idea formed in Terron's head. He realized he could use his bone weapons as a type of spear to stab the Ariados so that perhaps he and Zekra could escape. After thinking through the plan for a brief moment, the Cubone decided it go with it. However, when he was about to get out the weapons, he came to the horrible conclusion that he had left them in the room. He didn't have time to grab them before he got kidnapped.

Terron growled in irritation as he tried to figure out where he was being taken to. Even though it was dark outside, there were a few lit torches latched onto the sides of buildings. They didn't cover as much radius as electricity might have, but these ones were able make pathways seeable at least. Terron was able to see that he and Zekra were passing by the town square at the moment and were being taken into the section of town that lead south.

The Ariados stepped out of the shadows after checking to make sure nobody was around and then made his way to the destination in more of a hurry. Now that he had more visibility, Terron could see the southern section of town much more clearly and saw how different it was compared to the rest of town.

While the rest of Aurora Town had regular buildings, even if they were in odd shapes, this end of town didn't have a single building in sight. The entire area had colossal trees planted into the ground firmly with their giant roots. These roots would rise up out of the ground at times before burrowing back into the deep underground. Several holes were apparent throughout all of the trees' trunks and had light flooding out of each of them. Some were high above where only flying types could possibly reach it, while others were close enough to the ground that anybody could crawl through. The branches of such trees stretched in many directions and were so thick that some served as bridges to connect some of the trees with the others at the openings from high up. Resting on the ground at the bases of the trees were many bowl-shaped cauldrons that were held up by stands with three legs. In each of the cauldrons was a bright and burning fire that consumed large pieces of wood, making crackling sounds as they illuminated much of the area.

Terron and Zekra gazed at the wondrous sight, having never seen anything like it before.

"Alright, here we are." the Ariados said to them. "Don't be alarmed by what I'm about to do."

Terron tried to ask what the Ariados meant, but of course words didn't come out of his mouth. The Ariados made his way toward one of the trees that seemed to be the tallest and started crawling up its trunk with ease. Terron grew afraid that he and Zekra would fall off as the spider climbed up the vertical surface and his fear only intensified as he saw the ground getting farther away each second. It also didn't help that he was facing toward the ground and couldn't look away. He felt a sickening feeling build in his stomach.

Thankfully, the Ariados came to a hole that served as a window for an apparent hollow space in the tree. Terron sighed in relief at no longer having to fight against acrophobia and breathed in the refreshing air from above. The spider took Terron and Zekra inside the hole and brought them into a bright room that was lit with many scattered candles. The Ariados took them off his back and proceeded with removing the webbing from them and discarding it out the tree. He then glanced over at another Pokémon sitting in the background.

It was a Luxray. Yet, this Luxray had a slight difference when compared to other Luxray.

This one seemed to have eyes fixed in blandness rather than the usual fierceness known to be in Luxray.

It was a very subtle difference, but Terron nonetheless noticed it.

"I've brought them here." the Ariados said humbly. "They might be a little shaken up, but they're unharmed as you wanted."

"Excellent, Garter." the male Luxray said in a pleased tone. "You may go now."

The Ariados named Garter gave a small bow of his head. He turned around and then crawled out the window, disappearing elsewhere. The Luxray looked back at Terron and Zekra and began staring at them strangely as if they were a puzzle he wanted to figure out. Terron tried to ask what he was doing here, but he found that words weren't coming out of his mouth. The eyes of the Luxray were paralyzing to him.

It was at this moment that Terron saw more of his surroundings. He was in what appeared to be some kind of office. A few shelves lined the walls, filled with numerous books of all sizes. The Luxray sat behind a wooden desk of sorts near the back of the room. Such a desk seemed large enough to have many Pokémon gather around it. The Luxray tapped his claws against the surface of the desk lightly.

It was then that Terron saw something else about the room. Standing next to the only door in the room was a Bisharp. It appeared to be guarding the exit, as if it thought that Terron and Zekra might try to escape. It was, without a doubt, affiliated with the Luxray.

The Bisharp stared at Terron suspiciously, seemingly never blinking. Terron immediately turned away.

"So, Garter told me about you children." the Luxray stated. "He says that he heard you at the police station talking about a little incident that happened at Blackoak Town."

"Yeah, we were." Zekra admitted shyly, shifting around uncomfortably at the mention of that.

"And he says you know about the existence of certain creatures." the Luxray added before staring directly at Zekra. "He said that you, little Zorua, were a survivor of their assault on Blackoak Town. You saw them first hand and somehow managed to live despite not a single other Pokémon managing to escape."

Zekra didn't say anything, but her retreating eyes said everything that needed to be known. Terron wasn't pleased with seeing this and gave him the motivation he needed to speak.

"Why are you asking us about that stuff?" Terron asked lowly.

The Luxray glanced over at Terron. The lion didn't seem bothered by Terron interrupting him.

"I need to know what your friend knows about those Pokémon-like creatures." the Luxray replied calmly. "It's a rather important piece of information I'd like to have."

"So, you kidnapped us in order to do that?" Terron asked incredulously.

"Perhaps capturing you two was a bit too extreme now that you mention it." the Luxray admitted, surprising Terron at those words being spoken. "I apologize for that. But, I will give you a good reason for why your friend _should_ tell me what she saw: it's because this very place that you stand in is a place created for the purpose of eliminating those creatures. And if I'm not mistaken, you have valuable information to help with that."

Terron saw Zekra's eyes widen as her mouth opened slightly ajar. He, too, felt a twinge of surprise inside him.

"You can get rid of them? So this is like a resistance place?" Zekra asked breathlessly.

"Well, somewhat." the Luxray explained. "My name is Len. I, along with nine other Pokémon, are the leaders of this particular association, as you may call it. There are actually four other associations exactly like this one, but we're scattered throughout the region. In this one, however, my team of Pokémon are all in charge and we have thirty-two other teams working here as well. Publicly, we are known as the Special Tasks Fellowship, known as the Fellowship for short, where we perform missions that otherwise couldn't be done by regular Pokémon such as a wide variety of rescue missions, acting as search parties, and sometimes bringing criminals to justice. While we do those jobs in reality and we do want to help Pokémon, we have another separate goal that only those within this organization know about. We want to cleanse the world of those creatures you've seen, young Zorua: the Plagued Ones, as we call them. No one knows what they are, but we do know of their actions. They kill everyone they see on sight. Entire populations have been consumed by them. Families, children, the weak… none are spared. They are literally a disease that spreads through the lands, wiping out all life. They are death incarnated, which is why we want to eliminate them. Of course, this will take time and money to do so. So, this entire organization was made to build an army and fund research so that somehow we may find a way to eliminate the Plagued Ones... one day."

"That's amazing." Zekra said in an awed tone. "You really think that you can get rid of the Plagued Ones?"

"With a large amount of effort, maybe." Len replied. "And of course, by gathering information from those who have seen them. So if you will be so kind as to tell me what you saw. And be as descriptive as possible. I know it's painful to look back on those memories, but what you've seen could contribute to the end of those demons."

Terron glanced over at Zekra and saw that she was heavily considering Len's words. She spent about a minute thinking, deciding if Len really would listen to her unlike what the police had done.

"Alright, I'll tell you." Zekra finally said.

The Zorua then told Len the same information she had said to the police, but was slightly calmer about explaining it this time around. At Len's request, she added more detail into her story than, such as describing exactly what the Plagued Ones looked like and the abilities they had. She still drifted off at times in the story, especially during the tenser parts, but managed to continue eventually. Len would nod occasionally throughout the story, but otherwise said nothing. By the time she had said all that needed to be said, she was melancholy as expected, but not on the verge of tears.

"Garter says he found you telling this story to the police." Len stated. "Did you tell anyone besides them?"

"No, not really." Zekra answered sadly. "I only thought they needed to know since they'd know what to do."

"Under normal circumstances, perhaps." Len said. "But with this kind of information, you don't tell anyone else about it. We don't want the public knowing about the Plagued Ones since it will cause mass hysteria. The world isn't ready to know about them yet. Even though you told the police about your story, they most likely won't believe you for a variety of reasons. But despite that, don't tell anyone else about what you saw."

"But, what about all of Blackoak Town's citizens disappearing?" Zekra asked. "You can't hide that. Pokémon are going to question that."

"You let them wonder what happened." the Bisharp spoke, his sudden voice startling Terron and Zekra. "You don't tell them what happened. It's better to let their theories become their idea of the truth rather than have the actual truth haunt the rest of their days. Sometimes, a lie is more desirable than the truth. It keeps others at peace."

"King's correct." Len added. "That's why we don't let anyone know about the Plagued Ones. It hurts to know that we have to hide the truth, but it's necessary. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I suppose so." Zekra said with a sigh.

Terron wanted to disagree with Len and King at first, but he saw that they were right. He was after all, doing the same exact thing with his true identity, if for the safety of himself rather than others. If he told anyone besides Zekra that he was human, they would all see him in a completely different light and that could have several kinds of outcomes that Terron didn't want.

"Alright, well now that's settled…" Len said in a satisfied tone. "You two may go. I appreciate the information you gave me. It gives us a better understanding of the creatures. We'll try to find a new home for you children since your old one was destroyed."

King opened the door for the two so that they could leave, but otherwise said nothing. Terron began to walk out the door so that he could go back to the inn he was staying at and hopefully get some sleep. He didn't know how late it was now, but he wanted to get as much rest as he could before the sun came up.

"Actually, I have a favor to ask." Zekra said.

Terron turned around to find that Zekra was still standing in the room, not appearing to leave at all. She no longer seemed depressed, but rather, more hopeful. Terron stopped in the doorway and waited to see what she had to say.

"Yes, what is it?" Len asked.

"I was wondering if maybe you would let my friend and I join the Fellowship." Zekra said bashfully. "You know, let us join you in getting rid of the Plagued Ones."

Len's eyes grew as he took a step backwards out of surprise. He opened his mouth to gasp or say something, but silence was all that followed. It took a moment to recompose himself, but Len eventually found words to express what was on his mind.

"You really want to join?" the Luxray managed to say. "But... why?"

"Because the Plagued Ones ruined my life." Zekra answered boldly. "They took everything I know, and they'll do it with everybody else eventually. They can't get away with murdering everyone I know and I won't let them ruin anyone else's life. They have to be destroyed. All of them."

Terron was taken aback by Zekra's determination and the hate that burned in her eyes like tiny flames. He had never seen her like this and never thought she was capable of being this way. However, it was Len who was more surprised than Terron. The Luxray had a mix of disbelief and anxiousness in his eyes.

"I see you're determined to fight as a way to avenge those you've lost as well as to protect others from your fate." Len said hesitantly. "I've never had children work for me in the Special Task Fellowship as every team is composed of adults, but if you truly insist on joining, I could let you two become one of us. We've always accepted members who were willing to join our cause. Even if they were never as young as you two are... but there are no rules against letting you be here. I must warn you though; if you choose to join our cause, you must be willing to work hard and never waiver in your commitments. Once you join us, your life is dedicated to our cause. Every day you will doing some kind work that will contribute to eliminating the Plagued Ones in one form or another. It will be difficult, you will battle for your life countless times, and you will no doubt exhaust yourself to the core by the end of each day. We usually have adults because they know how to handle the stress put on them. But... you still want to join?"

"Yes!" Zekra eagerly said. "I want to join! I don't care what happens! I'm willing to go through everything you said! I'm stronger than you may think!"

"Very well then." Len said with a sigh before bringing his gaze over to Terron. "And what about you? Your friend seems to have made up her mind. What do you want to do?"

Terron started to feel uncomfortable and on the spot as he looked over at Zekra. She was smiling giddily and nodded repeated toward him as if to encourage him to join this organization as well. Zekra was in no way anxious like he was.

_She really wants me to join. _Terron thought uneasily. _She wants revenge and it's justified... but what about me? What about helping me in figuring out who I am? If we join this club, then how will I ever be able to remember anything about me?_

"If you join, Terron…" Zekra said in the middle of Terron pondering. "Maybe you can find out more about yourself. I mean, we don't know where to even start with figuring out who you are. So maybe if we stay here, it can lead to opportunities that will help you. Plus, maybe being here will help you understand yourself better. What do you say?"

_Well, if I come, we can still be together._ Terron reasoned. _I'd like to stay with her and I'm sure she'd want the same with me. And maybe she's right about staying here. I don't have anywhere else to go... I don't know anyone else... and I don't know anything about this world. Maybe joining this Fellowship will help me understand this world better along with myself after all. Yeah. That sounds like a good enough reason._

"Alright, I'll join with her as well." Terron finally answered.

"You will?" Zekra asked joyfully. "That's wonderful! That's great! Yaaaaay!"

Zekra started jumping up and down out of pure happiness. Terron heart felt lighter at seeing her so full of vim, but he expressed his feelings in a simple and very quick smile rather than a full-blown explosion of energy. Len started to exit the room with King following behind him.

"Alright, children." Len said as he stopped at the doorway. "Come along. You'll have to stay with us for tonight until we register you two as a team in the morning."

Terron and Zekra nodded and followed after the two leaders outside. Once they had exited the room, the children were able to see exactly what the rest of the base looked like. The entire tree had been hollowed out from the inside and constructed masterfully. Multiple flights of wooden stairs ran throughout the place. The entire inside was lit by hundreds of small candles that were all sitting on top of small platforms. Many rooms were constructed inside of the wood that had been within the tree and were all at different heights. Some were at the very bottom where the entrance was while others were towards the very top. Terron and Zekra marveled at the sight, but found that no one was awake. Not a single Pokémon was roaming through the place.

Everyone else was sleeping at such a late hour.

"Where's your room?" Zekra asked.

"It's two flights of stairs upward." Len answered. "This way."

Terron and Zekra followed close behind the Luxray while King took up the back as Len climbed the many steps of the staircase. The steps didn't creak, thankfully, so Terron wasn't too worried about them collapsing beneath his feet and sending him falling downwards. He still chose not to look down though.

After climbing for a while, the four came to a walkway that led to a particular room. Somehow, the walkway and room were held in place by having one side attached to the walls of the tree and by having some aid of ropes for the other side that were also attached to the wall. The room also had a platform underneath it to add even more support. It looked secure, but it still made Terron feel uneasy about how it was constructed. He felt that it might all collapse if a powerful earthquake were to ravage through the place.

"Don't worry about how it looks." Len assured as if he could sense Terron's anxiety. "Everything is tested to make sure that nothing will fall apart. Took a lot of work to make the base like this, but it's possibly one of the safest places I can think of. It has shelter for everything, and everything built here is perfectly stable. The rooms, the stairs, these little paths, even the branches you walk along when going to other sections of this base are all stable. You never have to worry about falling to your death."

"I guess that makes me feel better..." Terron muttered.

"Well, come along then." Len said. "I'd like to get some sleep myself you know."

The four went down the walkway and just like the stairs, it was stable and silent. There were no sounds to suggest that it would collapse. Eventually, they came to the door of Len and King's room which was shut tight and marked with a strange paw print of sorts.

"Alright here we are." Len said to Terron and Zekra. "Try not to make too much noise. My team likes to get their sleep… especially if they've had a long and hard mission earlier today."

"Wait, don't you have like ten members on your team?" Zekra asked. "I mean, how many Pokémon are in this room? I don't think you can fit _that _many Pokémon in there! It seems so small!"

"As if." King scoffed. "We split up everyone so that we all don't have to be cramped in there. No, you can't fit all ten of us in there. This is just where Len, Éclair, and I sleep. The other seven members have other joint rooms in the other trees of the base. That way we can keep order throughout the entire system here."

"Oh." Zekra said.

Len then gently opened the door and walked inside along with King. Terron and Zekra glanced at each other for a moment before stepping inside as well. The room was somewhat smaller than the room they had previously been in, but not by much. The floor was mostly a large blue rug with strange patterns. It was made of mostly wool-like material that Terron assumed came from the pelts of certain Pokémon. Along the walls hung a couple of lanterns to add minimal light to the room. Shelves lined the walls with various items and what appeared to be scarves and bandanas hung on small hooks embedded into the walls as well.

However, what caught Terron's attention the most was the single Pokémon resting on the rug and using it as a bed. It was a fox with golden-white fur and nine beautiful tails that curled in several directions on the ground.

A Ninetales.

No sooner had the four entered the room did the Ninetales open one of its eyes and looked at them sleepily.

"Why are you two still awake?" it asked in a voice that showed it was female.

"We had some business to take care of with these two." Len answered as he gestured to Terron and Zekra. "Sorry to bother you, Éclair. We didn't think you'd wake up."

"I can always tell when someone enters my presence, even while I'm resting." Éclair smiled. "But it's fine. I will see you two in the morning along with you children. Then hopefully I can give a better introduction of myself than I could possibly now. I have had a long day is all and I am much too tired to speak..."

Éclair's eyes closed once more before her head slumped back onto the carpet. She had fallen asleep once again.

"Alright, sleep wherever you want." Len said to Terron and Zekra. "Tomorrow I'll get you two your own room right after your registration. For now though, get some rest."

Terron and Zekra nodded in approval and then wandered onto the rug. Once they found a comfortable spot to rest, they went to sleep.


	6. Chapter 5: Valor and Vendetta

**Chapter 5**

**Valor and Vendetta**

* * *

As soon as the sunlight poured into the room through the makeshift window, the start of Terron's new life working for the Special Tasks Fellowship began– but not quite in a way he would have preferred.

"Arise, children." a familiar voice called loudly. "You have had enough rest."

Terron slowly woke up from his slumber to find that he was staring at the Ninetales he had seen last night by the doorway. Unlike that time, though, the fox was very much awake with no signs of fatigue.

"You're Éclair." Terron said to the Ninetales, remembering her name.

"Yes, we met yesterday." the Ninetales spoke, sounding much more powerful and noble than compared to when Terron first saw her. "Though my introductions were insufficient and lackluster due to my fatigue. That is why I would like to try once again to introduce myself to you and your friend as soon as she awakens."

Not long after Éclair had spoken those words, Zekra stirred in her sleep. Her eyes opened slowly before she glanced over at the Ninetales.

"Ah, you are awake young Zorua." Éclair said. "Did you rest well?"

"Not really." Zekra answered wearily. "I don't really feel like I slept though."

Zekra's eyes then darted around the room as if she noticed something wasn't right. She looked back at the Ninetales with a puzzled expression.

"Hey where's Len? And King?" Zekra asked. "Weren't they here last night?"

Terron noticed that she was right; the two who had brought him and Zekra into the room were no longer around. In fact, it appeared as though they had never been in this room at all. He found that odd, since this was their bedroom, after all.

"Len and King awoke an hour ago." Éclair stated. "They often awaken an hour or earlier before the dawn of each day to prepare for the rest of that day. Such is the way of all members of our team."

"Oh, I see." Zekra said.

"Yes. Now that you children are awake, I believe I should properly introduce myself." the Ninetales said. "My name is Éclair. I am the second member of the team organized by the Luxray you know as Len. What are your names, children? Who might you be?"

"Uhhhh, Zekra." Zekra replied.

"Terron." Terron answered simply.

"Zekra, you say?" Éclair pondered out loud. "What a lovely name for a Zorua. And you Terron... pardon me for asking, but what are you? I don't believe I recognize your species."

"Oh, I'm a Cubone." Terron answered. "I just don't have a helmet. I... lost it."

"Such a pity." Éclair said with a frown. "I have heard that Cubone prize their skulls as their most valuable possessions. Losing one is the same as losing their family members to them."

"Yeah." Terron replied.

"Hopefully a new helmet will come to you, however." Éclair then said optimistically. "It assists with your species' style of combat quite efficiently and will be very valuable once you start completing missions for us. But enough chatter. I believe you two are supposed to be registered today. Is this correct?"

"Yep!" Zekra said happily. "We're ready to join you guys and become a team!"

"Wonderful." Éclair smiled. "Your enthusiasm is a sight to see. Come, children; Len awaits your presence."

Terron and Zekra sluggishly managed to get up from the warm and comfortable rug before making their way to Éclair. The three exited the room together and began walking up the stairs to the much higher areas of the base. Despite dawn having come only a few moments ago, the inside of the base was quite bright and more than enough light filled the area. All of the candles that had been lit were blown out now. It was recent too since wet wax dripped down the candles' sides.

Yet despite the differences from how the base looked at night, one thing was still the same; nobody was awake.

"Hey, when does everybody else get up?" Terron asked curiously as he noticed all of the closed doors.

"Mid-morning." Éclair answered. "Many of our teams carry out their work until late into the night. Also, the businesses in town are not open until mid-morning, thus it encourages our members to rest until they most necessarily must. Fatigue has much influence on them, but I do not hold that against them."

Terron nodded silently. The trio continued to navigate through the tree until Éclair had brought the children back to the room they had been in the previous night. The Ninetales gently tapped her paw against the wooden door a few times.

"I have brought the new recruits." she spoke. "They are ready for you."

"Thank you." Len's voice said humbly from the other side. "Bring them in if you may."

The Ninetales pushed the door open and ushered Terron and Zekra inside the room. Once they entered, Terron saw that this room was a type of office. There were several cabinets throughout the entire room, all shut tightly and locked. Strange footprints marked each cabinet, though it was used more for a symbol rather than accidentally being there from someone stepping on it. At the other side of the room was Len, standing behind a counter. He smiled once he saw the three come in.

"Well, if it isn't our new addition to the Fellowship." Len said in a pleased tone. "How were they for you, Éclair?"

"They were enjoyable company." the Ninetales answered. "They will make fine members."

"Ah, I see." Len said with a nod. "Well then, since you're here, let's get started on your registration. Come over here so we can start that."

Terron and Zekra walked over to the other side of the room until they were at the desk. It was quite taller than them, so they had to stand a few feet away from the desk so that they could see Len. They anxiously waited to see what they were supposed to do. Len began taking out pieces of paper from cabinets behind him with a small amount of trouble since he didn't have any hands. Éclair chuckled at the sight of seeing him having trouble.

"Gah, almost wish I didn't have to take Emdox's shift right now." Len complained as he finally managed to bring a sheet of paper to the table. "It really makes me see the value of hands."

"Emdox?" Terron asked, catching those words despite them being in a mutter. "Who's that?"

"He is another member of my team who has the task of keeping information for the Fellowship organized." Len stated. "He registers practically everything from here. New teams, new members, jobs you've completed, you name it, it's all here somewhere in paper. However, today he had to go run an important errand for us since the members of our team who usually take care of that are on a _different_ errand. And they won't be back for another month or two. So, I'm running registration while King is taking care of my position."

"You guys sure do a lot of work." Terron said flatly.

"Yes, it's all part of the job. But I don't mind it." Len replied. "Anyway, back to your team registration. First thing's first. What do you want to call your team?"

"A team name?" Zekra asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Yes, we have to be able to identity your team somehow." Len answered. "While your 'team' is only at two members right now, it could grow to have more members. Thus, we need to be able to know who works for who in order to prevent confusion. Your team name can be anything... though don't do something ridiculous. Please."

Zekra stared at Len for a moment of confusion before starting to contemplate.

_A team name?_ Terron thought, suddenly feeling uncomfortable and searching through his mind in desperation for an awesome sounding name. _Can I come up with something cool so quickly? Well, better get ideas first._

"What is your team's name?" Terron then asked Len, figuring that would help spring up ideas. "I mean, even if you guys are the leaders, do you call yourselves by a certain name?"

"Team Valor." Éclair answered before Len could say so.

Terron turned toward the Ninetales. A puzzled expression creased across his face.

"Valor?" he repeated.

"Yes, Valor." Éclair said again. "Named after what gives each of us strength to fight against an unstoppable enemy. It is not a word that many Pokémon use. Most of the time, it is called Courage or Bravery. Even pluckiness. But the valor we named ourselves after, _that_ is the courage of fighting for a noble cause. Our valor does not fight just for us, but for others as well. Now what will your name be? What word shall represent your team so that, when others look upon you, they shall think of you as the embodiment of that particular word?"

Terron glanced over at Zekra and saw that an idea was slowly forming in her mind. He would have liked to create a name for the team himself, but since Zekra seemed to have a better idea, he'd let her have the honor of naming their team. After all, the name of Len's team didn't spark any ideas as he had hoped.

"Team... ... ... Vendetta." Zekra said after the idea had fully formed in her mind.

"... ... ... Vendetta." Len said in a plain voice.

Terron looked over at Len to see that he was letting the name sink into his thoughts. Though Terron wasn't sure if he was imagining it or not, he thought he saw a quick spark of something flicker in the Luxray's eyes. Like what happens when one reaches an epiphany of a question they've longed to have answered. However, it had passed so quickly that the Cubone wasn't even sure if that's what it was.

"How does that sound, Terron?" Zekra asked him. "You think it's good?"

Terron quickly brought his attention to his companion before nodding in reply. It had a powerful ring to it, and also represented them... well, Zekra anyway. But still, it was a name Terron liked and wanted to stick with.

"Len," Éclair said in a bit louder of a voice than what might have been necessary.

Len blinked.

"Oh, yes, right." Len rambled, awkwardly writing on the paper by using his claws that were dipped in ink. "Maybe King should have taken this shift even if he hates paperwork... but okay, Team Vendetta. A fine name I must say. Now we have just two more things left. Who will be the leader of your team?"

Terron was very sure that Zekra was going to proclaim herself as the leader, so he prepared to volunteer her as the leader as well.

"He can be the leader." Zekra said as she pointed to Terron before the Cubone could speak his mind.

"Really?" Terron asked in disbelief, turning his head to her. "You don't want to?"

"Well, I think you'd make a good leader." Zekra explained with a nervous smile. "I don't think I'd do so well at it anyway. So, you should be the one who gets the say in things."

Terron stared at the Zorua and heard her give a quiet laugh of anxiety. He still didn't understand why she thought he would make a better leader, but he didn't feel like questioning Zekra.

"I suppose that's fine." Terron replied, getting over the shock of the decision.

Once he had recorded their names and filled out the forms, he awkwardly fumbled with his paws to fold them up neatly. After some measure of success, he carefully bit down on the collection of papers and carried them to a nearby file cabinet, dropping them into the archives and locking them up.

"Now that you've been registered to our association, we have one last item of business to take care of." Len said to Terron and Zekra. "We have to mark you to let others know that you're associated with us."

"Mark us? What do you mean by that?" Zekra asked curiously.

Rather than answer, Len approached them. For a moment, he ominously stared down upon Zekra's form, then lightly placed his front paw upon her forehead. The fox winced, holding her breath in confusion.

"Normally, Emdox has a different technique with our marks and we'd wait for him to return, but because you are of the dark type, you have to marked in a different way," Len said plainly. "Don't worry, though; you won't feel a thing."

Before Zekra could ask what the Luxray was talking about, a surge of electricity throbbed from his paw and streamed into her forehead. For a few moments, the currents of yellow energy danced through Zekra's fur. Terron watched in horror as his companion _thumped_ to the floor, her legs limp and useless. Her eyes remained open, if only partially though, showing she was still conscious.

"Zekra!" Terron cried. "What did you _do_ to her?!"

"Paralyzed her." Len answered calmly. "Don't worry, though, she's perfectly fine. She just can't move or feel anything."

Terron was about to say more and started making his way toward the Zorua, but Éclair stopped him with a paw and shook her head in disagreement. Terron, though unwilling, stayed where he was. He watched as the Luxray turned over one of Zekra's paws so that it was faced upward, standing on it and holding it in place. He lifted his other paw, and there was a soft yet startling sound as his sharpened claws slid into view. Terron squinted at them; they were _red._

Terron bit down upon his tongue in revulsion as the Luxray began digging his claws into the pads of the Zoura's paw. He clenched his fists, trying with all his might to trust the old warrior and resist the urge to rescue her from his assault.

However, as his claws went into the pad of Zekra's paw, no blood was drawn. Terron watched in fascination; he imagined that Zekra would have some kind of reaction, but she could only lay limply upon the floor and witness whatever it was that Len was doing to her. She didn't seem to be in any sort of pain.

A minute or so passed before Len finally released Zekra's paw.

He returned to his desk for a moment, producing something from a drawer. It was a round, red berry, still hanging from a vine. Terron recognized this sort of fruit; he had eaten some before, when he had traveled through the groves. Gently, the Luxray opened Zekra's mouth and helped her to chew and swallow the fruit. Only a few seconds later, Zekra seemed to gasp for breath, regaining her mobility.

Terron sighed in relief at seeing that his friend was okay and unharmed.

"She bears the mark now." Len stated to Terron. "Now we just have to wait until Emdox gets back from his errand later tonight and then we can give you the mark. Once that's done, you two can start going on missions for us."

"Where's the mark on you guys?" Terron asked curiously, not spotting any strange brands on Len and Éclair.

Shrugging, Len and Éclair flipped over their right paws at the same time and showed them to Terron. Etched into the black pads on their paws was a marking that resembled that of a four-pointed star with three lines crossing through the star and intersecting in the middle. On the intersection point of the lines was a single circle. The symbol resembled that of branding marks, though it seemed far less painful. Each of their marks were of a different color however due to the coloring of their fur. Éclair's took the shade of brilliant gold while Len's took on a more electric yellow color that matched the shading of his own yellow fur.

"These are Emdox's way of the marks. The one I most prefer." Len said as he set his paw down. "However, I don't think mine are too bad. They don't show through the fur as easily through those that don't have pads on their paws, but it's just as permanent. Though mine do take a few days for the wound to heal to make the mark look like this..."

It was then that Terron noticed Zekra slowly making her way over to them. She was very sluggish in her walking as if she had just woken up from a long slumber, but nonetheless didn't seem to have a hard time moving. Once she came over to Terron, she smiled before allowing him to see her mark. It was in the same shape and style as Len and Éclair's mark, but it seemed to lack the marking of the circle where the lines intersected. Her marking still had the appearance of a scar, but if what Len said was true, then it would look more like their mark in a while.

"Well, while you two wait for Emdox so he can do the mark for you Terron..." Len started to say. "I suppose Éclair can show you your new rooms. Éclair, if you would."

"I shall." the Ninetales replied before walking toward the door. "This way, children."

Terron and Zekra waved goodbye to Len before leaving the room with the nine-tailed fox.

"Your room is in another tree." Éclair stated. "Just as ours room is, your room resides high above others. Allow me to direct you to it."

The three exited the current tree before going into the one next to it. Once they entered inside, Terron and Zekra saw that had a slightly different structure when compared to the other two they had been in. This particular tree was meant for holding bedrooms as was very apparent by the numerous rooms attached to the walls. In fact, the whole tree seemed to be dedicated entirely to housing Pokémon. Unlike the tree that held many of Team Valor's services, this one seemed to offer none. As Éclair explained to them along the way, the entire tree was meant as a resting area.

Eventually, after cimbing up numerous staircases, the three came to a room towards the very top. It may have been the highest room in the entire tree.

"This is your new room. Team Vendetta's room." Éclair said with a smile before opening the door for the two.

Terron and Zekra walked inside and saw exactly what their new bedroom was like. It had a similar design to that of Len's master bedroom, and it was approximately the same size, if only a tiny bit smaller. A few empty hooks hung on the walls and a single barren shelf lined the wall as well. There was even a large hole in the wall to serve as a window, just like the other room. However, unlike the other room, this one didn't have a rug to sleep on. There were instead two piles of hay neatly set on the floor. They were a bit larger than necessary, but that was probably because the room might have been expected for larger Pokémon. The two wandered inside as they looked around everywhere, taking in the feeling that this room really was theirs.

"Do you like the room?" Éclair asked.

"Yeah! It's great!" Zekra said happily. "It feels a little empty though without having any stuff like you guys did."

"Your room will soon fill with all sorts of valuables." Éclair smiled. "As soon as you start performing missions, you will have many items to fill the space in your room."

"Alright, thank you!" Zekra replied before sitting down in one of the hay beds.

"It was a pleasure." the Ninetales said. "Emdox should return in six hours, so take this time to explore the rest of the base, or take the time to rest. We expect that once you have both been marked, you will do missions starting tomorrow."

"Already?" Terron asked.

"Yes, despite being children, we expect you to be able to perform your necessary jobs as soon as possible." Éclair stated. "You may find the errands you must do at the base of the main tree on the Bulletin Board. That is, the tree we left moments ago. Once you have completed your mission, you will report it to Emdox so that he may keep record of it. And you will do this every day of your time here unless otherwise instructed. However, only one mission is required per day. Some missions may require you to be gone for numerous days, but those are exceptions. You are free to accomplish more than one mission per day though should it work to your schedule."

Terron and Zekra nodded slowly, memorizing everything the Ninetales had just said. Once the fox had seen their sign of acknowledgement, she turned toward away.

"I must go now; there are several tasks I must complete." Éclair said. "I will see you two again in the future. Remember what I said, and if you ever require my attention, you know where to find me. I wish you children luck on the path you have chosen to take with us."

And with that, the Ninetales left the two alone in their new room.

* * *

Terron and Zekra began to wander the rest of the base a short while later, curious to know what the rest of the place looked like. The two at the moment found themselves walking along the odd bridges which allowed more passages into the other trees from high up. Despite the bridges being the branches of the very tree, the walkway held firm and showed no signs of breaking.

However, that didn't prevent Terron from glancing downward as they walked along the branch. The two were so high up and slipping off the tree seemed ridiculously easily.

"Why aren't there any kind of safety ropes on these branches?" Terron wondered. "The branches are thick… but I don't think that's going to stop anyone from falling off."

"Why would anyone fall off though?" Zekra then asked. "There's plenty of room and there isn't even a breeze out. You'd only fall off if you keep looking down."

"But what if you lose your balance or trip?" Terron asked. "I mean, I feel like I'm going to trip and fall off the edge…"

"A lot of Pokémon have great balance." Zekra stated. "We have to or else we'd get into a lot of trouble during battles. Plus, nobody trips… unless you're incredibly exhausted or practically dying."

Despite the Zorua's words, Terron still felt uneasy about walking across the bridge. However, he kept his words to himself and tried to keep his focus off the ground.

"Hey, when you got paralyzed, did it hurt?" Terron asked. "I mean, Len basically dug his claws into you foot…"

"Well, I didn't get hurt physically by the claws." Zekra replied. "I _thought_ I was going to hurt, but I didn't feel a thing. But that didn't matter too much anyway since I really wanted to get out of there, but I couldn't move. _That _was painful in its own special way."

Zekra grimaced as she began to release her pent-up thoughts of the incident.

"I kept trying to move, but my body wouldn't listen!" Zekra cried. "I couldn't even talk! It was horrible with being unable to get away or even ask what you guys were doing! Ugh! I never want to get paralyzed again!"

"Hopefully that doesn't happen to me." Terron said as he nervously played with his hands. "I'm supposed to get marked by a different Pokémon, but I don't know if it's in a different way as well. Hopefully it is since what you went through sounds like torture."

"No, being trapped in your thoughts is a wonderful experience." Zekra muttered sarcastically.

"Whatever way I get marked, I suppose I'll just have to get it done and over with." Terron said, slightly annoyed by her attitude. "Not like I have a choice. But, _why_ do we have to get marked? Isn't there a simpler way to tell we belong to the Fellowship?"

"Maybe they do this so that they can tell right away if we're members." Zekra suggested. "I mean, we could have badges I suppose… but then we might lose them. Maybe they do this so that you never lose your Fellowship identity."

"Suppose so." the Cubone shrugged. "Still seems like a pretty drastic way to make you a member. They could have at least made it seem less like an assault and more of a ceremony or whatever…"

"Well the important thing is that we're members now." Zekra stated. "So, I guess we shouldn't dwell too much on the reasoning for these marks. I mean, it's kinda cool, so I'm not complaining. Except for how they _put _this thing on me!"

As the two continued to make their way forward, it was then that a group of three Pokémon came out of the tree the two were headed for; a Vaporeon, Kirlia, and Pupitar.

The trio seemed to be in a hurry and scurried down the bridge. They quickly passed by the children, but the Pupitar accidentally bumped into Terron as it went by. Thanks to the speed and mass of the Pokémon, the Cubone stumbled backwards. He tried to balance himself back out, but was quick to find that he no longer had a footing on the tree.

"AHHHHHHH!"

Terron saw the ground grow closer and closer to him. His eyes grew dry from the falling, but he didn't dare close them. He attempted to land on some branches, but he wasn't able to control his plummet. Even if he managed to steer himself toward one branch, it was too small and would fall apart the second the Cubone touched it.

Just when the ground was only seconds away, Terron felt something latch onto his back. Immediately, his falling ceased and he came to an immediate stop a few feet off the ground.

Terron looked up to find that a silky strand had attached to his back and held him firm. His eyes followed the source of the silk to find a certain Ariados towards the peak of the tree; Garter. The silk that prevented Terron from dying was connected to the spider's mouth. Terron felt himself hoisted up by the one strand despite how impossible that seemed and lowered onto the branch he had originally fallen from. The Pupitar and the others were no longer on the branch, though Zekra was still there and smiling in relief.

The Ariados then made his way down the tree to where Terron was. He removed the silk from Terron.

"Seems that I managed to catch you in time." Garter said. "Do you have any broken bones or injuries of any sort?"

"No, I'm fine." Terron said awkwardly. "Just trying to calm my heart down. But what are you doing here? You're Garter… right? Len was mentioning you, but he didn't say much about you."

Terron took a step back.

"You're not going to kidnap us again, are you?" he then asked wearily.

"No, of course not." Garter assured. "I don't have any intentions of doing so. But, like you said before, I'm Garter. I'm a member of Len's team here at the Fellowship. I've been here for about a decade. I'm the one who makes sure no one suspicious enters here."

"Then how come you kidnapped us?" Zekra then asked. "We weren't around here."

"Because you two had information that we wanted." Garter explained. "We needed that information in a more descriptive form, but you two wouldn't come with me when I asked. So, I had no choice but to take you two by force."

The Ariados let out a melancholy sigh.

"However, I know that doing so wasn't right." Garter then said. "I apologize for my actions. I'll try to find a way to make up for it. I'll promise though that you won't be kidnapped by the Fellowship again. Since you are a team now from what Len told me, there wouldn't be a reason for us to do it."

"Well, I think I can forgive you." Terron said. "And, you saved my life after all. I think that's a good enough reason to accept your apology."

"Thanks." Garter said with a smile. "I wish you two luck on your future missions."

The Ariados then climbed back up the tree to the spot he had originally been sitting in. With the conversation done, Zekra and Terron made their way to the other side of the bridge.

They entered inside the new tree to find its inside structure was a mess hall. While it was mostly empty now save for a few early risers, it was very clear that every platform here was meant to serve as an eating area. A few tables were spread around the various heights of the tree as well as a few chairs and mats. Zekra and Terron peered downward to the very bottom and saw that there was a small line in front of what looked like a serving area. Behind the counter where all the Pokémon lined up to, there was a Wigglytuff giving out meals to whoever was next in line. Behind the Wigglytuff there was a door, where various Pokémon would go in and out of and sometimes give the meals to the Wigglytuff. It could be assumed that behind that door was the kitchen where everything was made.

"Huh, looks like they're serving breakfast." Zekra stated. "You want to get something to eat?"

"Yeah, I could use some food." Terron replied. "I wonder if we have to pay for it, though. I mean, we don't have anything to pay with."

"Only one way to find out I suppose." Zekra shrugged.

They walked down all the stairs that lead to the cafeteria and managed to arrive minutes later. The two got in line behind a sleepy-eyed Flaaffy and after waiting for a time, managed to acquire their meals. Thankfully for them, the meals served here were free, so their lack of money no longer concerned them. Terron carried both of their food items to a table where they then started to eat.

Terron looked down at his meal, which was a strange mix of fruits he had never seen before.

"What exactly is this?" Terron asked.

"Berries, I think." Zekra answered. "Don't know what kind though. Guess you'll have to eat them to find out."

Terron cautiously picked up a pink, curved berry with a white tip before taking a bite out of it. It was sickeningly sweet and, while Terron liked the sensation it gave him, he was eager to try another berry out of the pile. Zekra appeared to be eating seasoned and cooked pieces of meat.

Meat of some unknown Pokémon.

Terron felt incredibly disgusted and was about to leave the table, but he was interrupted by two Pokémon. An Arcanine and Azumarill came toward the table, the Azumarill sitting on the top of the Arcanine's massive head. The large dog took a seat in front of the two children. It dropped a large slab of meat dangling from its mouth onto the table with a loud _THUMP! _and the Azumarill simply munched on an apple in its paws while staying in its spot on the Arcanine.

They smiled pleasantly at Terron and Zekra.

"Hey, you two wouldn't happen to be the new recruits for the Fellowship, would you?" the Arcanine asked. "We heard someone mention something about two children joining, and we were curious to know if that was true."

"Yeah, we are." Zekra said brightly. "We just joined today. We're Team Vendetta."

The Arcanine and Azumarill stopped chewing on their food and seemed frozen in place. Though there weren't any hints of emotion to show what the two were thinking, it was easy to feel the awkward tension. Terron stared at the two oddly, attempting to understand their reactions.

"Sooo, where did you guys hear we joined the Fellowship?" Zekra then asked.

The two strangers loosened up and started to eat again. They weren't as cheerful as they had been earlier, but at least the two no longer seemed to be giving off that strange vibe.

"Oh, we heard from Len." the Azumarill answered. "We're his team mates, so the whole team knows the latest news about what's going on around here."

"I see." Zekra said with a nod. "Yeah, we met a few of your other team members already. King, Éclair, and Garter were their names."

"How lucky for you." the Azumarill cheered. "But, I suppose we'll introduce ourselves. I'm Rayne, and this is Bane."

"And what are your names?" Bane then asked. "I don't believe Len told us what they were."

"My name's Zekra." Zekra replied. "And this is Terron. He's the leader of our team."

"Hmmm, fine names I say." Bane stated. "I can tell you two will make fine recruits. Under your name, I think one day you two might become quite notable in Fellowship history."

"Thanks!" the Zorua said cheerily. "We'll try to live up to that idea, right Terron?"

"Yeah, we will." Terron replied.

"Wonderful." Rayne said with a smile. "With that kind of mindset, you can accomplish so much. As much as we'd like to keep chatting though, we have to get going since we have work to do. But, we'll see you two again sometime!"

"Oh, okay." Zekra said. "Well, see you later!"

Bane and Rayne finished up their meals and got to their feet. The two then left as Terron and Zekra watched them go. Once they were gone, the children finished up their meal in mostly silence before they too left to continue exploring.

* * *

Several hours later, Terron and Zekra came back to their room after having explored more of the base. They tried to find any more notable places within the entire network of trees, and while they did discover a meeting hall for all of the members to assemble to for conferences, they hadn't found much else too worthy of importance. All of the other trees were simply bedroom holders. Yet exploring each and every tree had been time consuming for the two as well as very tiring. By the time they had found their own room after some confusion, they nearly collapsed in their beds from all the exhaustion. Despite how tired they were though from all the climbing and the late hour in the night, Zekra was still very excited about being able to join the Fellowship.

"I can't believe we've managed to join." Zekra said happily as she looked over at Terron. "It's incredible! We get our own room, free food, and we get to go on adventures every day!"

"I'll admit this place seems pretty nice." Terron admitted as he lay on his back in the hay. "But we haven't gone on any missions yet. We don't know if those will be any good. The way Éclair was describing it, it almost sounded like a chore."

"I'm sure it'll be fun." Zekra said. "Don't ruin it! But what time do you want to wake up tomorrow for our mission?"

"Hmmm, probably in the middle of the morning." Terron answered. "That'd give us some decent sleep time and most of the day will be available to do for the mission. How do we know when to wake up though? Do you guys have any sort of way of keeping time?"

"Oh don't worry." Zekra said confidently. "I've got that covered. Leave getting up at the right time all to me."

It was then that someone began knocking on their door. Moments later, a Xatu opened the door and came flying in rather than walking. It landed on the floor in front of the two and then tucked its wings in front of its body to form a vest of feathers. In its beak, held by a strap, was a large messenger bag of sorts that bore the sigil that was scarred into Zekra's paw.

"Well, well, if it isn't our new team. Team Vendetta, if I remember correctly." the Xatu beamed before stopping in front of the two. "A Zorua and a Cubone. Zekra and Terron."

"Ummmm who exactly _are_ you?" Terron asked oddly. "And how do you know our names?"

"Oh, that's right. You two haven't met me yet." the Xatu replied. "My name is Emdox. I'm the one who registers Pokémon here in this particular Fellowship. Or at least _usually_. Len registered you two since I was gone today. But, he left me with one last task to do for you; marking you, Terron. And giving you this bag. But that can wait. We'll focus on the mark first."

"Yeah, that's right." Terron said in realization. "But, how do you plan on marking me?"

"Well hold out your hand so I can see it." Emdox instructed rather than answering the question. "I presume that's where you want your mark as opposed to your feet."

"Well that depends." Terron said cautiously. "How are you going to put this mark on me?"

"In a completely painless and clawless fashion." Emdox assured.

Terron reluctantly held out his paw toward the Xatu. Suddenly, he felt some unknown presence connect with his mind and could feel it searching for something within there. Terron cringed and squirmed as the uncomfortable feeling of having something alien in his mind overcame him.

"Don't worry. This will only take one second." Emdox assured.

Terron grumbled a bit, but otherwise remained still. Terron watched as the Xatu began squinting his eyes in concentration. Terron felt the mental presence connect with something in his mind not long after and take complete control of it. Terron was about to yell from the strange sort of mental panic it gave him, but it was then that he noticed something unusual was happening to his hand. In the middle of his palm the flesh slowly began to change to a white shade. It started out as a small dot that was barely noticeable, but then it started to grow. It grew into various lines that spread all over his hand as if an invisible marker were drawing on his palm. They ran in various directions, some crossing over others as a certain image began to form on Terron's palm.

The Mark of the Aurora Town Fellowship. It, just like Zekra's, lacked the circle at the connection of lines, but it was still the symbol.

Once the sign had fully formed onto Terron's hand, Emdox finally broke off the connection. The Cubone sighed in relief at knowing that his mind wasn't being invaded anymore.

"There we go." Emdox said. "You've been marked."

"How did you do that?" Terron asked in wonder as he touched the marking to find that it felt just like the rest of his skin.

"Oh, well it's simple really... I just told your brain to change some of the melanin in your paw." Emdox answered. "I simply made your mind change the coloring into the shape of the mark and now that message has permanently been fused into your mind. So just like your friend's marking, but less of a scar and more of a naturally occurring sort of way."

"You... took control of my brain? And you made it do things?" Terron asked uneasily.

Terron wasn't quite sure how that was even possible, but something else was bothering him more than logic. A feeling about the idea was what bothered him most. Something about that seemed... unsettling.

"Yes I did." Emdox nodded. "I am a psychic, and many of us psychics can do just that. But have no fear; I never take control of Pokémon's minds unless for good reason. And even then, I don't do anything drastic with it. And don't worry; not all psychics can do what I just did. Only truly talented psychics can take control of your mind. I know you're worried about that."

"I'm not worried." Terron insisted.

"Oh yes you are." Emdox chuckled. "We psychics can also read minds, so you can't ever lie to me without me knowing it. But relax; it's normal to feel worried about others getting into your head. Everyone's susceptible to it, so everyone fears it. Unless, of course, you're a dark type like your friend. I can't get into her mind or even read her thoughts since her kind projects a barrier that blocks off any psychic power."

"So that's why you can't mark me and Len has to instead." Zekra said casually. "Cool… I'm special."

Terron grumbled at the remark of that, not liking how his friend was immune to mind-reading and he wasn't. However, then he remembered that he and Zekra were looking for a psychic to help him. Terron's attitude became more positive and hopeful, but he decided he'd ask Emdox later for his assistance. They were in the middle of something right now anyway.

Emdox then handed the bag he had with him to Terron. Terron opened it up to find that there were a few items inside, namely some kind of map, a small sack filled with a few berries, and a couple of scarves.

"My last item of business to take care of with you two is giving you your supplies and informing you of some necessary things." Emdox said before pointing to the bag. "That there is your field pack, a bag you bring with you on missions so that you might have somewhere to store all of your items during your travels and while in the dungeons. Inside of the bag is the starter kit we give every team that joins us. First, the map. This map gives the location of every mystery dungeon and every city in the region of Shiron. Of course, if you want to know more about such places, then you'll need to look that up elsewhere. But nonetheless, this map is probably the most valuable and useful item you'll ever get from us. Please treat it with care."

Terron slowly opened the map and spread it out on the floor for him and Zekra to see. It was quite detailed as Emdox had explained and seemed to give a good description of how the entire land appeared. Unfortunately, it had the strange footprints for where the descriptions for what each dot on the map were.

"What are these footprints?" Terron asked.

"These are footprint runes." Emdox explained in a surprised tone. "Surprised you haven't seen them before. They're our written language."

"Terron wasn't really taught how to write." Zekra suddenly explained. "And he wasn't really exposed to footprint runes either sadly. Though I can read them for us. Right Terron?"

Terron slowly nodded his head while mentally agreeing with Zekra as well so that Emdox would be convinced. Even if it was a lie as to why he couldn't read them, he had to agree with it for now.

"Hmmm, I see." the Xatu mused. "That's a pity. But I suppose your friend will have to be the one to read for you then. Anyway, onto the rest of the items. The smaller bag holds one Pecha, one Rawst, one Cheri, and one Oran berry. It's a minimal amount than you truly need in when going on missions, but it'll suffice until you get more money to buy some. And the last two items, the two scarves in your bag. One is a Pecha Scarf, which protects you from poisoning at all times if you wear it. The other scarf, the Persim Band, prevents enemies from confusing you and making you attack your allies. Both are sufficient items that will greatly help you in your many quests. However, there are far more efficient items that can do greater feats, but you must acquire those on your own.

"The last thing I must tell you of is a bit of a review, but it's useful to remember it. As Éclair has told you, you must do at least one mission per day unless the job takes multiple days where you'll be gone for quite a while. We don't care what mission it is, but as long as you do something posted on the Bulletin Board, you have accomplished your assignment for the day unless otherwise said. Your amount of payment depends on what kind of mission you do, though most of the time we'll pay you thirty percent of what the client offered. The other seventy percent will go to us for funds and such. And that is all. Any questions?"

Terron and Zekra shook their heads.

"Well alright then." Emdox said. "Then you're all set. May your first mission end in a success."


	7. Chapter 6: At the Beginning of the Day

**Chapter 6**

**At the Beginning of the Day**

* * *

"Hey, it's time to get up. We've got a mission to do."

Terron felt someone nudge his side. Feeling tired and not wanting to wake up, he started pushing away whatever was bothering him. The nudging ceased, causing Terron to smile as he started to fall back asleep.

"WAKE UP! IT'S TIME TO GO ON OUR MISSION!"

The sudden shouting caused him to jolt awake. He reflexively rammed his fist into the source of the noise.

"OWWW!"

Terron immediately looked toward where the noise came from. Much to his surprise, he found Zekra a few feet away from him, holding her snout with her paw. Small drops of blood were splattering onto the floor around her. It didn't take Terron long to figure out what had just happened.

"Wait, that was _you_ yelling into my ear?!" Terron cried. "Why would you do that?!"

"Well, you wouldn't get up!" Zekra said defensively. "I talked to you and I pushed you around, but nothing worked! So I did the next best thing!"

"The next best thing was nearly making me deaf?" Terron asked incredulously as he rubbed his ear. "That's what your brilliant idea was?"

"You didn't have to punch me at least!" Zekra then said. "You gave me a nose bleed!"

"How were you expecting me to react?!" Terron shouted. "By calmly waking up?! It's your own fault you got hurt! Be a little smarter next time!"

Zekra glared sharply at the Cubone, an aggravated growl escaping her maw. She crouched down low to the ground, claws slowly coming out of her paws.

Terron, upon seeing this, backed up into a wall. He recognized Zekra's stance to be the one she used when hunting down the Rattata in the Grey Lands. His eyes grew frantic as he saw Zekra's claws glint in the sunlight coming into their room. The Cubone wasn't sure how badly he'd get hurt if was scratched up by such claws, but he didn't underestimate them. Besides, he knew the Zorua would attack him with more than just claws.

Terron had seen what she did to those Rattata.

The bloody corpses they became were on his mind now.

"Wait, don't kill me!" Terron said hastily. "I'm sorry I said this was your fault! It's not your fault! It's mine! I just got startled is all! Please don't murder me!"

Zekra frowned, but she did get out of her hostile position and had her claws go back into her feet. Terron felt better upon seeing this, but he still kept his distance from the Zorua until he was sure she wouldn't try to attack him off guard. Zekra wiped the excess blood off her mouth.

She sighed.

"No, you're right." Zekra said. "It _is_ my fault I got hurt. But, thanks for apologizing about what you did anyway."

"You're welcome… I guess." Terron said awkwardly.

Terron glanced at Zekra's still-bleeding nose, starting to feel the guilt of giving that to her now that his anger and fear were gone.

"I think we should get you something for your nose." Terron suggested.

"Nah, it's fine." Zekra assured. "This isn't that bad. It'll heal up in a few minutes. We should probably get some breakfast though."

Terron nodded in agreement and grabbed their Fellowship bag from off the floor. He put it on so that the two wouldn't have to come back for it and headed for the door. As soon as he opened it, however, he and Zekra found themselves staring at an astonishing sight; a massive amount of Pokémon walking throughout the Fellowship base.

Everywhere the two looked, there were Pokémon filling up the spot. Almost every single section of the walkways in the tree was occupied. The immense traffic of Pokémon went in several directions and blended with the various chatters of different voices. Terron and Zekra stepped outside of their room to get a better view of all the Pokémon. Thankfully for them, the walkway in front of their room was not occupied by others.

"Wow… I didn't know the Fellowship had so many members." Zekra remarked. "There's so many different Pokémon…"

"But why are there so many in this tree right now?" Terron then asked. "We didn't see this many when we were here yesterday. And even at this time, there weren't any other trees crowded like this."

"Well, we were only around here in the early morning and afternoon." Zekra reasoned. "We never saw how it was during this time since we were in the other trees. I think Éclair was mentioning that this is where a lot of Pokémon have their rooms and everyone gets up around now, now that I think about it. Sooo, guess this is the morning rush."

"No wonder why Team Valor wakes up way earlier than everyone else…" Terron said, amazed by the sheer amount of traffic.

"Looks like we'll have to get through everyone though if we want to get some breakfast." Zekra said in dismay. "Oh boy…"

With reluctance, the two ceased taking in the view and made their way to the moving crowd of Pokémon. They stopped in front of the passing crowd, watching as everyone moved with haste. Everyone seemed so much taller than the two, giving Terron the dreadful thought that he and Zekra might get trampled if they attempted to join the mob. He almost wanted to wait for everyone to clear out of the way, but unfortunately, some impatient Pokémon were behind him and Zekra.

"Come on, quit jamming up the path!" a Lairon yelled as it started shoving the two forward.

Terron and Zekra stumbled into the crowd, immediately losing sight of one another. Terron attempted to look around for Zekra, but he was constantly pushed forward and wasn't able to see much with so many tall Pokémon surrounding him. He tried to fight against the current of traffic, but found that doing so only caused groans of complaint from others and him crashing into various Pokémon.

"Watch it!" a Monferno shouted as Terron ran into it. "Pokémon are_ trying_ to get to breakfast! If you want to go up, take the other stairway!"

"Sorry, I'm just looking for a friend!" Terron explained awkwardly.

"I don't care!" the Monferno stated in annoyance. "Take the other stairs! You're getting in everyone's way! Especially my way!"

Not wanting to argue with the monkey, Terron turned around and followed the flow of traffic to the bottom of the stairs. Though he still found walking through the crowd to be a huge hassle since the Pokémon would almost trample him, it was still less aggravating than fighting against the flow. Eventually, Terron made it to the bottom where everyone started to disperse. Whether they went up to another staircase where the bridges were or wandered outside, mostly everyone was heading for the mess hall. A few Pokémon seemed to head elsewhere, but Terron didn't recognize any of those Pokémon to be Zekra.

"Zekra!" Terron called. "Where are you?!"

"Over here!" Zekra's voice cried.

Terron looked around for a minute until he spotted Zekra. She was in an open space in the middle of the tree, where no one else was for some reason. Terron hastily made his way toward her.

"Hey, you made it!" Zekra said happily. "For a second, I thought you got trampled or something!"

"I almost did… several times." Terron said distastefully. "But how'd you get down here so easily? You don't look like you had any trouble at all."

"Oh I had trouble… but then I just jumped on top of someone's head and used everyone's heads to get across the crowd." Zekra said slyly. "Crowd jumping. Thankfully, no one was too upset by that."

"Sounds like fun." Terron stated dully.

"Yes it was!" Zekra cheered. "But, now that we've gotten through that insane crowd, how about we go get our breakfast?"

"Yeah, I like that idea." Terron replied.

The two then headed toward the cafeteria, following the less chaotic crowd into the mess hall that was quite a distance from their tree. Once they managed to get inside the tree, however, they saw a huge line formed behind the counter. There had to be at least a hundred Pokémon in line. It stretched around the room and even went upward to the higher sections of the tree. Terron and Zekra felt their jaws drop as they saw such a massive waiting line.

"I don't think we're going to be able to eat soon…" Terron said.

"Yeah… maybe we should get our mission and _then_ get some breakfast." Zekra suggested. "Maybe the line will be a litter better then…"

"Oh yeah, we have to pick out missions." Terron said in realization. "Éclair was mentioning that. Think she said it was back in the tree where Len's room was. Guess we'll have to do some backtracking, but it's better than waiting in _this_."

Terron looked at the line in disgust before making his way back to the tree where Team Valor's office and rooms were. The two could have gone to get their mission before since the tree was right next to their own, but Terron didn't mind their wasted time. At least he knew now that getting the mission selected first thing in the morning was probably a good idea.

When the two entered the correct tree, they found a large Bulletin Board at the very bottom where they stood. Surprisingly, no one was around to look at the missions, meaning the two could take their time with choosing their own missions. Several pieces of paper were posted onto the board with pins, all being written in the Footprint runes. Behind the board, tacked onto the wall, was also a map that was basically a larger version of their personal map. The two approached the board, staring at all of the assignments. Terron peered at the words he couldn't attempt to read.

"Well what do they all say?" Terron asked.

"There's so many of them to explain." Zekra replied in wonder. "So many different things we can do!"

"Like?" Terron asked.

"Some pretty basic things." Zekra explained. "You know, rescue missions, item hunting, surveying new locations, stuff like that."

"Hmmmmm, how about an item hunting mission?" Terron suggested. "That seems easy enough for a first mission and maybe it'll be fun."

"Alright, let's see here…"

Zekra spent a few moments reading through all of the assignments, scanning their descriptions to see if one of them suited their tastes. When Zekra finally did find a mission, she ripped it off the board and set it on the ground for the two to see.

"Here's an interesting one." Zekra said. "It says we need to go search for some item that a Floatzel named Jet lost while in a mystery dungeon. It's something called a Rescue Stone, which I guess must be pretty valuable. And it's somewhere inside of a place called Overgrowth Jungle. That looks pretty easy. And plus, it's a jungle. We've been in a forest, so I'm sure a jungle can't be that much different!"

"And where is Overgrowth Jungle?" Terron then asked.

Zekra picked up the assignment and brought it over to the large map. Terron followed her, and upon coming closer to the map, he saw how it was different from their own map. It was almost the same as the personal travel map, but far more detailed. It had more colorings to show different sections of Shiron, the names of some of the island-like pieces of land scattered into the seas near the region, and even the areas the other Fellowship Associations covered. According to the map, the five Fellowships of the land each took care of a specific area. Four of the five each took care of the north, east, south, and west sides of the land while the fifth one was guardian to the lands not governed in the middle of the region.

There was also a large dot on the map that indicated exactly where this particular base was located throughout all of Shiron, perhaps to help save location hassle. It showed that Aurora Town's Fellowship apparently governed the west side of the land and the islands in the sea that were near the west coasts.

Zekra overlooked the entire map carefully as she browsed through every single landmark there was. Terron simply stood by and watched since he obviously couldn't read the words on the map.

"Oh! It's actually pretty close!" Zekra cried after a while. "It's right here, see?"

She put her paw over a small portion of the map. Just like she said, it only seemed to be a couple of inches south from where Aurora Town stood according to the map.

"That is pretty close." Terron said with a nod. "Alright, let's do that mission. Similar environment, easy task, and close to here. That sounds like the perfect idea of a mission."

"Yes! Our first mission!" Zekra said happily as she rolled up the mission and handed it to the Cubone. "Let's celebrate with some breakfast!"

Once Terron put away the assignment, the two eagerly headed to the mess hall once again. When they got there, there was still a line, but thankfully it appeared to be shorter and moving at a steadier pace. Seeing this, the two got in line and patiently waited for their turn.

When the two finally got to the front of the line and ordered their meals, about fifteen minutes had passed. They were quick to order their food thanks to how hungry they had gotten and once they had received it, sat down at a table in haste. The two immediately began eating their meals, Terron being too occupied with his own food to be sickened by Zekra's food.

However, what he did notice was that someone was looking at him from another table across the room.

King.

The Bisharp was having breakfast of his own, but Terron couldn't tell what it was from where he sat. All he knew was that King was staring in Terron's direction with his usual glare, seemingly not blinking. Terron didn't know if King really was watching him or if it was his imagination, but it did cause Terron to feel a bit tense. He did his best to ignore it and eat his meal.

It was then that Terron remembered something regarding their mission.

"Hey, how long is it going to take to get to Overgrowth Jungle?" he asked the Zorua next to him.

Zekra swallowed the meat in her mouth and pondered for a bit.

"Uhhhh well if it's still about mid-morning now…" Zekra mused. "And it's about a few miles away… uhhh, we should be there a little before noon."

"Wait, how do you even know what time it is now?" Terron asked curiously. "I mean, you guys don't have any clocks or anything, do you? How do you know it's still the middle of the morning and not noon already?"

Zekra blinked. Her expression became puzzled.

"I don't know what a clock is…" Zekra answered oddly. "But, I know what time it is since I can sense it. Pokémon just sort of know what time it is, thanks to our instincts. It somehow knows when dawn will be coming soon, even when we're asleep. We can even use it to serve as an alarm so we can get up at a certain time."

Zekra stared at Terron.

"Do you humans not have it or something?" Zekra then asked.

"No, we don't." Terron answered. "We just have clocks to keep track of time. I guess they're like your time instincts, except they're more accurate with what time it is. Like… you say it's mid-morning right now. Well, on our clocks, it would say it's ten thirty. And what that means is that it's ten hours after the start of the day… even though the sun hasn't risen yet. We call the start of the new day, a time where the sun isn't out yet, twelve AM, and-"

"Wait, you start your day before dawn?" Zekra interrupted. "The beginning of the day to you humans is in the middle of the night?"

"Sort of." Terron replied. "I mean, we don't get up in the middle of the night to start our day… that's just when the day starts. We usually get up after the sun's come out or something. But yeah, midnight is when the day starts. Midnight is what we call twelve in the morning…"

"But that's not morning." Zekra then stated. "That's still night time."

"Well _humans_ call it morning." Terron insisted.

"But that just contradicts everything you just said." Zekra said. "You say the day starts in the middle of the night, yet you call that time twelve in the morning… which you also say is midnight. Sooo you're saying that your day starts at midnight… the middle of the night… yet you call it the morning like when the sun's out. And not only that, but you don't even start your day until _after_ the sun rises, yet you keep referring to the 'start of the day' as the middle of the night when no one's awake…"

"Look, I'm not the one who came up with the time tracking system." Terron stated. "But it's easy to understand. Especially if you have a clock to help you keep track."

"Well maybe for you, understanding that is easy, but for me it isn't!" Zekra explained, unable to wrap her head around the idea. "It's so weird! Why would you start the day when the sun isn't even up yet?! Dawn is the start of the new day! A day starts when there's light! And then it ends when the sun goes down! Then the night gives us time to rest until the start of a new day! While it's altered for nocturnal Pokémon, it's still as simple! Why would you humans overcomplicate such a simple understanding?!"

Terron didn't respond right away. He looked down at his bowl, staring at the half-eaten fruit. His eyes were in a pensive state.

"Well, when I look at it now, I guess it _does_ seem pretty complex." Terron said quietly. "I guess in a world without clocks, this time tracking idea humans came up with can be difficult to understand. Not to mention, it'd be impossible to use since there aren't any clocks in this world."

Terron picked up a piece of fruit and rolled it around in his hand.

"Guess if I want to continue living in this world, I'll have to learn how Pokémon keep track of time." Terron continued. "Just wish I knew how…"

"I'm sure you'll figure it out." Zekra assured. "I mean, you're a Pokémon now. Maybe you'll just develop the time instincts instead of relying on your weird 'clock' thing you were mentioning. Everyone's got it, so maybe spending time here will make you more like us. But until then, you've got me to keep track of time the Pokémon way. So, you can always count on me for that!"

"Yeah, I'll remember that." Terron said with a small smile. "Just need to get rid of my human understanding and try to accept how Pokémon see it for now... then hopefully I'll be able to keep track of time the Pokémon way."

The two then continued their meals, moving onto lighter topics such as their opinions on their new room and what they should do for the rest of the day if they had enough time after the mission.

Once Terron and Zekra finished up their meals, they brought their plates in back to the Wigglytuff who served them. The line had mostly vanished since everyone had received their meal, so the two were quickly able to return their used dishes without waiting too much. Once that had been done, they started to go outside to start their mission.

"Hey, you two! Wait!" the Wigglytuff cried from behind the counter.

Terron and Zekra stopped and turned around to see what they were being called for. They watched as the Wigglytuff came hurrying over before stopping in front of them. It panted to catch its breath as it held out some items in its hands. In one hand were a few small apples and in the other was an item that made Terron's eyes grow wide with wonder.

"I saw you children had your bag with you and realized you were going on a mission soon!" the Wigglytuff said. "And I thought you guys might need some food!"

"You know, we never really thought of that." Zekra said bashfully, feeling embarrassed about forgetting an important item needed for dungeon crawling. "Thanks. We'll just put these in the bag."

Terron opened up their bag and allowed the Wigglytuff to deposit the fruit inside with tender care. After it had done that, it looked over at Terron with a smile before handing him what was in its other hand. It was something that Terron had secretly been longing for ever since yesterday.

"And I got this bone for you." the Wigglytuff added to Terron. "I realized you were a Cubone after a little while and found it odd how you didn't have any sort of weapon. So, I took one of the bones from the kitchen that we normally throw out and figured you could have use for it! How is it?"

This particular bone was more club-like and fit the more standard Cubone weapon shape compared to Terron's other weapon. It was filled with marrow rather than being hollow like a bird's skeleton and fit much better in his hands. He gently tapped the bone into his palm and could feel its sturdiness. This one would most definitely take more damage and _give_ more damage to others than the previous one. Terron felt a smirk creep up onto his muzzle. That strange feeling of powerfulness came back again.

"It's perfect." he said. "Thank you."

"Well I'm glad to hear that." the Wigglytuff smiled. "And come back if you ever need any more bones in case that one breaks!"

Terron nodded in approval before he and Zekra finally left. It was time for them to begin their first mission.

* * *

**Evergreen Pass**

Once the two had left the Fellowship and figured out which way was south, they exited out of Aurora Town. In order to get to their destination, they had to take a certain trail, which their map named 'Evergreen Pass'. It was very similar to the landscape the Gray Lands had, however this place had a dirt path running through the grass that stretched on into the distance. Otherwise, it was just like the endless grassland Terron was all too familiar with. There weren't any trees growing nearby nor any other kind of vegetation. This path was a near perfect replica.

"So looks like we've got about four apples to eat while in the dungeon." Zekra said as she peered through their bag while they walked, which was her turn to carry. "And of course, the berries and scarves we got from Emdox last night. Hope that's enough for this place."

"We made it through the other dungeon with nothing." Terron replied calmly. "I'm sure we can make it through this one with those supplies."

"I suppose." Zekra shrugged. "I'm just a little worried, is all, since this is our first mission. Aren't you worried?"

"Well, a bit." Terron admitted. "But I'm sure that we'll do fine. We just have to look for this item, right?"

"Yeah, a Rescue Stone." Zekra said. "According to the description on the paper, the Floatzel doesn't know where it is inside the jungle. So we'll have to search the whole place. Don't know how big the jungle is, but I'm sure it can't be that big."

"And what exactly does this stone look like?" Terron asked curiously.

"Well... to be honest, I don't know." Zekra answered nervously.

Zekra attempted to laugh as if trying to make the situation seem funny, but Terron didn't think so. He felt slightly agitated at the thought. He had no idea what this stone looked like since he had never even heard of the item, and he had been heavily relying on Zekra for aid with that. However, now it was revealed she didn't know either. And according to him, that was a serious problem.

"How are we supposed to know what to look for, then?!" Terron cried. "It could be any rock we find in there for all we know!"

"Maybe we can just look for special rocks." Zekra suggested awkwardly. "I mean, it sounds special. So maybe it looks special. So maybe we can just pick up every odd looking rock we find?"

"Gah, I guess it's the only option we have." Terron muttered in agitation. "How many do you think we can fit in the bag?"

"Hmmmmmm." the Zorua said before opening up the bag again and looking through it. "Well with all of our items in here, I'd say about twenty if they're pretty small. That should be enough."

"I hope so." Terron said in return.

The two continued travelling down the road without much else to talk about. Occasionally, they'd stop to take short breaks and to take turns with who would carry the bag, but otherwise the two moved at a relatively fast and steady pace in silence.

After walking for quite a distance, Terron and Zekra finally came to a place that was quite different than the rest of the trail. A few feet away from them stood a large amount of thick leaved, dark trees. So thick, in fact, that neither the trunk nor the branches of the trees were seen. The entire sight the two Pokémon saw was just a thick horde of jade. The trail they stood upon lead into a single large opening within the denseness that resembled more of a cave entrance than anything else. They couldn't even see what lay beyond the entrance. It was pitch-black. Going in meant complete trust of knowing there was something within. Terron and Zekra felt heavy anxiety come over them as they heard the sounds of primal roars from within.

"Well, this is it." Zekra said. "Somewhere in there... there's a stone that got dropped. And we need to find it."

"Right." Terron said before going over to Zekra and reaching into the bag strapped onto him. "You want to put the scarfs on now before we go in?"

"Sure." she said with a nod.

After digging through the bag for a moment, Terron managed to pull out the two pieces of cloth that were meant to protect them. One was a bright pink color that reminded Terron of the Pecha berries he had eaten numerous times and the other was still pink, but somehow darker. He held them both out to Zekra.

"So which one do you want?" Terron asked curiously.

"Well, this one is the Pecha Scarf from the picture it has on it." Zekra said as she pointed to a tiny berry symbol on the lighter-colored cloth. "So I would guess the other is the Persim Band. Hmmmmm… guess I'll take the Pecha one. That fine with you?"

"Yeah, I suppose." Terron said as he handed her the scarf. "I don't really think it matters too much. Though hopefully these will come in handy somehow."

"And can you help tie it on?" Zekra asked. "I don't have hands unlike you. And even if I did, it'd still be easier if you tied it on."

With a nod, Terron carefully tied the scarf around her neck so that it wasn't too tight, but it wouldn't come off easily. Once he had done that, he took his own scarf and tied it around his neck. Despite being told that it would help him, he didn't feel very different. The only difference he could feel with this band was that his neck was gathering more heat now. However he put that aside as the two of them looked into the opening.

"You ready, Terron?" Zekra asked.

"Yeah, whenever you're ready." Terron replied.

With a deep breath, the two then made their way into the gaping entrance of the Mystery Dungeon.


	8. Chapter 7: Without Aid

**Chapter 7 **

**Without Aid**

* * *

**Overgrowth Jungle S1**

Terron had truly believed that a Mystery Dungeon jungle would be just like the forest one he had gone through last time. He really wanted to believe Zekra in her saying of how they'd be similar.

However, the very second the two entered into this Mystery Dungeon, his hope for familiarity disappeared in an instant.

This place most definitely wasn't a forest. The trees that grew around them were warped into shapes that Terron didn't think were physically possible. Their roots crept throughout the dirt, heaving up dirt along the many paths spread throughout the area. The sky was covered by the dense tops of the trees and because of that, hardly any light was able to penetrate through. Vines hung from the vast canopy of trees and twisted into knots and other tangled fashions. Moss lined the dirt paths. The air within the area was incredibly humid and made Terron's body feel sticky from all of the moisture.

Yes, this place was definitely different from a forest. Though, at least this place had some lighting in it compared to the ever-growing darkness of the other dungeon.

Terron and Zekra heard the sounds of something moving and rustling behind them. They turned around to find that the vines that scaled the walls of the jungle were moving. The plants were rapidly growing, sealing off the dungeon entrance. It was just like before, but neither of them made an attempt to escape. They simply watched in slight despair as the outside world closed off from them.

They were imprisoned. This was their world now.

"Well, this is a bit of a change." Zekra said as she looked around. "At least it's kinda like the other one with the plants. So it's kinda like the forest place. The jungle looks nice, though… or at least right now."

"Yeah, welcome to the jungle..." Terron remarked quietly. "The place where things look nice before something kills you."

"Let's start looking around." Zekra said before walking forward. "That way we can get out as soon as possible."

Terron couldn't agree more. He followed after Zekra as the two of them kept their eyes peeled for any kinds of stones. Since most of the jungle was infested with trees, it was somewhat relieving that in this place, nearly everything was green or brown. Any kind of stone would stick out easily.

The two wandered down the first path to the left in search of their item. As they went through there, Terron's mind started to wander now that he had time to do so. A few random thoughts went by, such as how Mystery Dungeons sealed the exit off or what other missions the Fellowship members were doing.

But then, a strange and recent memory came to mind.

Specifically, when he and Zekra had met Bane and Rayne. His memory froze on the odd glances the Team Valor members gave.

Along with this still image, a new thought surfaced.

_Why were those two staring at us so oddly?_

Something had been going through their heads.

Terron hadn't put much thought into it before. He had maybe done that when talking to Bane and Rayne for two seconds, but he never had an afterthought. He figured it wasn't important and forgot about it.

Yet, now that it had resurfaced into the Cubone's thoughts and he could dwell on the subject, he felt bothered and slightly paranoid.

Terron glanced over at Zekra. Perhaps she knew what was with the faces of the Team Valor members from the other day. Maybe it was a Pokémon thing.

"Hey, Zekra." Terron said.

"Yeah, what's up?" Zekra asked curiously as she constantly moved her head around to look for the stone.

"Well... Did you find Rayne and Bane's reactions to us joining the Fellowship weird?" Terron asked, his words somewhat hesitant.

"You know, I was wondering that myself." Zekra admitted. "Maybe they're just concerned about us since we're kids."

"Yeah, suppose that would make sense." Terron replied. "But, why worry about that? We're the only kids in the Fellowship according to Len, but that's not a big deal, right? I mean, these missions we're supposed to do... they're not that hard, are they?"

"Maybe they're being too overprotective." the Zorua said. "And I don't think the jobs are that hard. I mean, we're doing fine so far. Besides, they don't seem to realize that I have experience. I've hunted plenty of things, so I'm more than capable. I'm not that weak!"

Terron started to smile wryly as his worrisome thoughts ceased.

"And what exactly have you hunted?" Terron asked in a sarcastic tone, not completely believing her since he remembered the Spinarak incident.

"Rattata, Pidgey, Azurill, and a Spinda one time when it was acting really weird and looked a bit confused." Zekra replied proudly.

"Yeah, that's an accomplishment." Terron remarked.

"Whatever!" Zekra whined.

The two reached the end of the path they were traveling on... only to find that they were back at the beginning. Terron was about to begin the next path over, but Zekra stopped him.

"Hey, maybe we should mark what paths we've been on." she suggested. "That way we can tell where we've searched already. And then if we do find the right path, we can go back and check the others to see if they have the stuff just in case. It's for precautions."

"Sounds like a lot of time on just one floor." Terron stated. "You sure you want to do that? I mean... we don't know how big this dungeon is. We could be here for a long time if we completely check every floor."

"But we have to find that stone!" Zekra insisted. "And we don't know where it is! We could have missed it and we would never know until it's too late! After all, it's better to be safe than sorry."

"Well not in a Mystery Dungeon." Terron said as he looked around them. "But fine. We'll check all the trails. I just hope the food lasts long enough. We're lucky not to have run into any Pokémon."

"Don't jinx it!" Zekra shouted.

She then took a small stick that was lying around and stuck it into the ground in front of the trail they had just taken. It served as a makeshift post and reminder of the way they had went. Once that had been taken care of, the two began the next path over.

* * *

**Overgrowth Jungle S2**

After what felt like an hour had passed, the two had finished exploring the entire section of the first floor. They weren't able to find anything, but that didn't dampen their spirits at all.

When the Pokémon entered this area, Terron felt his stomach rumble. It wasn't painful, but it was bothersome since he knew what that meant; he would have to refuel on energy soon.

Not long after they entered their first path did an unwanted guest appear. A Treecko was in the middle of the path, crossing to the other side. However, as soon as it saw Terron and Zekra coming its way, it stopped in its tracks and faced them. A deadly glare was etched into its eyes.

Terron and Zekra stopped and stared at it. Zekra was staring at it curiously as if finding it fascinating, but Terron felt a strange sense of dread overcome him. Even though the Treecko wasn't very threatening, he still felt unnerved by it. He couldn't even blink his eyes.

"Well, looks like our first battle of the dungeon. A little Treecko out for a stroll." Zekra said casually. "You wanna take care of it? Or me?"

"You do it." Terron decided quickly, hiding his unexplainable fear from the Zorua.

Zekra let out a loud huff as she glanced at Terron.

"You're just saying that because grass-types have an advantage over you." Zekra stated blandly. "But if you insist. You're getting the next one though no matter what it is."

_So that's what it is. I'm scared because that Pokémon can beat me easily._ Terron thought as he calmed down. _I guess I'm feeling this way because I'm a Cubone now. Wonder what else will change now that I'm a Pokémon..._

Terron's pondering was suddenly interrupted by the sound of the Treecko's battle cry. He watched as it charged toward them, swinging its tail out to strike them. Terron quickly backed off a few feet as Zekra stood her ground. As the bushy tail came her way, the Zorua jumped up into the air and dodged the strike. As she fell back down, she opened her mouth wide to latch her teeth onto the Treecko.

However, the feral was able to see this and quickly maneuvered out of the way just in time. It countered by shooting out a red beam from its mouth that swiftly struck Zekra's side. She yelled as her body began to glow the same shade of red before she hit the ground. Small white bubbles streamed out of Zekra through the beam before being absorbed into the Treecko in an instant.

"Hey! Don't you dare think you can take away my energy and use it as your own!" Zekra shouted.

She quickly got up during the middle of the attack before running toward the Treecko. The wild Pokémon prepared to smack her with its tail once more, but before it could, Zekra jumped into the air and a pink light enveloped her.

When the light vanished, a new Treecko dropped to the ground, landing on its feet with grace. It looked at the feral with a pleasant expression, not fazed by the hostility of the other Treecko. The feral one ceased its attack and stared at the newcomer oddly, unsure of what to think of this new Pokémon. It tilted its head to the side.

A sly grin suddenly formed across the new Treecko' face.

It sent a kick to the feral's head, catching it off guard and knocking it to the ground. With the opponent down, the new Treecko then leaped into the air and landed on the feral with as much force as possible.

"_AAAHHHH!"_

The feral Treecko squirmed around from under the other Treecko's foot until it managed to free itself. Once it had done that, it slipped away into the forest in a panic.

"Lousy wild Pokémon." the Treecko muttered. "Picking a fight and not even bothering to finish it."

Terron stared at the Treecko that had its back to him, not understanding what had just happened. He had an idea… but he wasn't sure if such a strange explanation was logical. However, he did seem slightly convinced his idea was true upon seeing the grey tail that stuck out of the Treecko that bore an uncanny resemblance to another tail he knew…

"Zekra…?" Terron asked hesitantly.

The Treecko, realizing it was being addressed, turned around and gave Terron its attention.

"Yeah, what is it?" the Treecko asked.

"You're a…" Terron tried to say.

The Treecko stared oddly at the Cubone for a moment until it finally realized what was bothering Terron. It gave a nervous laugh.

"Oh, I didn't change back yet. One second." the grass type then said.

The pink light from before started to cover the gecko as its shape shifted back into Zekra's normal form. As the light faded away, she smiled pleasantly at Terron. The Cubone only stared with wide eyes.

"There, back to normal." Zekra said. "Sometimes I forget I changed forms. I usually tire out or get injured, and that puts me back to normal. Been a while since _I_ had to make myself me again."

"You can turn into other Pokémon?" Terron asked, the surprise still present in his voice. "I mean, you still had your tail, but you looked just like that Treecko. How do you do that?"

"By using the power of illusions." Zekra said proudly. "A power only given to Zorua and Zoroark."

"Illusions?" Terron repeated oddly.

"Yeah, illusions." Zekra confirmed. "You know, stuff that looks real even though it's not. I have this ability to create illusions and make it look like I'm a certain Pokémon. However, I'm not really that Pokémon. I just have their _look_. It's not like with Ditto where they actually turn into other Pokémon and get their powers as well. I just pretend to be someone else and I kinda can use some of their basic abilities. Like with the Treecko, I could just do kicks and punches and maybe tail smacking if my tail would change too. But if I were to turn into say… an Abra, I couldn't use its psychic powers since I don't get the powers. "

"But, if you're just using illusions and pretending to be someone else, how are you able to hurt others?" Terron then asked. "It's fake, so how do use that as an attack?"

"I never really understood how my abilities work either." Zekra said meekly. "It's really complicated apparently. But, I've heard that there are better illusion powers that are even harder to understand, but they're really cool! Like Zoroark can use their illusions to make more than just themselves different. They can change an entire area into whatever they want! And they can even use the powers of the ones they pretend to be! It's awesome! I look forward to when I can do that!"

"But for now all you can do is just change yourself huh?" Terron asked.

"Yeah, I'm still learning I'm afraid." Zekra said in disappointment. "And I can only turn into Pokémon that I see in front of me. I haven't really been successful in turning into Pokémon that are from my memory. They always look so weird and deformed. Plus, I've still got to figure out how to get my tail to change as well. It would help with disguises."

"How long can you stay in your illusion form?" the Cubone then asked.

"Depends, really." Zekra said with a shrug. "Usually not long. I think the longest I've done is five minutes since it takes a lot of energy and concentration. I'm working on making it better, though. Just wish that somebody could teach me, since my family isn't exactly-"

Zekra immediately realized what she was about to say and cut herself off.

"Let's keep walking." Zekra abruptly said. "You know, before anymore wild Pokémon come."

She immediately went forward, not bothering to wait for Terron's response. Terron was about to say something, but then realized why Zekra wanted to get going. Upon having this epiphany, he frowned in melancholy before following after his companion.

* * *

**Overgrowth Jungle S3**

After passing through all of the available trails of the second floor, still no stones were found. All that was found on the ground was moss. A lot of moss at that. However, the two still continued searching. By the time they were looking through the fourth path out of the possible six, Terron felt his stomach ache again. This time it was much more painful. He clutched his belly before stopping. He reached into the bag he had to carry and dug around a bit before managing to find an apple. He smiled eagerly before starting to devour the fruit without hesitation.

"Hey, can you hand me one of those?" Zekra asked. "I'm getting kinda hungry too. I would hunt some Pokémon around here... but I think everything here is some kind of plant Pokémon. Those kinds of Pokémon taste nasty. At least apples have a bit of sweetness to them."

"If you insist." Terron said with a shrug.

Terron took out another apple before holding it out to Zekra. She took it from his mouth before she sat down and began taking bites out of it. The Cubone figured they could rest while they ate and sat down next to her with the bag set between them. There was quiet between them as Terron simply let his sights wander around the dungeon. Everything seemed at peace. Everything was quiet.

And then he saw something.

High in a branch that stretched over them was an Aipom. It was just lying there with its tail wrapped around the branch, apparently trying to get some sleep despite it being broad daylight. However, that wasn't what caught Terron's attention. No, it was what was grasped in its little purple hands.

A bright, blue stone.

Terron immediately nudged Zekra.

"What?" Zekra asked as she looked over at him.

Terron pointed at the Aipom. Zekra peered over at the direction and after staring at the Pokémon for a while, finally saw the stone Terron had seen.

"That could be it!" Zekra said excitedly. "Now we just need to get it down from here!"

"I think I can handle that." Terron said as he got to his feet.

The Cubone made his way over to the tree that held the Aipom until he was right under the very branch it slept on.

"You know, I could climb up those trees instead." Zekra said as she went up to the Cubone. "I could just turn into that Aipom and getting up there would be easy."

"It's alright." Terron assured. "You took care of that last Pokémon; I might as well try to take care of this one. I need to practice my aiming skills anyway."

"Whatever you say, Terron." Zekra shrugged.

Terron prepared to toss the bone at the Aipom when something dawned upon him. If he threw his bone, and it missed his target, he could lose it. But, if he didn't use his technique to get the Aipom, he risked not completing his mission. He could always just yell at the Aipom to wake it up, but he was worried that it would run away and forever be lost.

_I don't know..._ Terron mentally said. _I don't know if I can do this without messing up. I only knew how to hit those spiders from last time with accuracy because of that voice. It just... it just told me where to throw and it felt like something took over me. I don't even understand how it happened. Wait! That's it! I just need that voice again! I need its help! But how...? I don't have any control over it. It just shows up..._

Terron silenced his thoughts and decided to wait and see if the voice would come to him. Everything seemed to grow quiet around him. So quiet, in fact, that he could hear the wind blowing through the jungle and the leaves of trees swaying.

He waited.

And waited.

And waited.

…

…

…

Nothing came from Terron's mind after what could have been an hour for all he knew. Out of agitation, he threw his bone toward the Aipom with a snarl. It rapidly spun in circles as it flew into the branch.

"_AAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"_

The weapon smacked into the branch right where the Aipom slept, causing the monkey to jolt awake in a panic. It jumped from the sudden sound and fell out of the branch. Thankfully for it, its tail was still wrapped around the branch and managed to prevent the Aipom from plummeting to the ground.

However, the stone it was holding had fallen out of its grasp from the panic and came tumbling down toward Terron. The Cubone quickly rushed forward and held out his hands to catch the stone, forgetting about his weapon, which had just came crashing back down a few feet away.

With a leap, he managed to grab the stone just as it came near him before cupping his hands around it. He smiled with victory at managing to accomplish his goal. Unfortunately, he didn't remember he was falling down as well now until it was too late.

_**THUMP!**_

Terron landed on his stomach and nearly had knocked the wind out of him. He sharply breathed in to compose himself and groaned in pain. He slowly got to his feet as he caressed his stomach to ease it from the dull, thudding pain.

"Good job Terron!" Zekra congratulated as she came over to him with the bag in tow. "Now hopefully that's the right stone we need. Then we can stop searching and get out of here!"

"Yeah, I hope so too." Terron said as he took the stone in his grasp and stuffed it in the bag. "Now let's get going. We've got what we-"

"_AIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEE!"_

Without warning, five Aipom fell from above and landed around Terron and Zekra. They surrounded the two in a loose circle as if to prevent them from escaping. All of them seemed furious with Terron and Zekra, though one in particular seemed the angriest. Terron recognized that Aipom to be the one he had stolen the rock from. Somehow, he could tell it was different from the others.

"Great." Zekra growled as she set the bag on the ground. "They're ganging up on us because we upset one of them and now they're all working together to beat us up!"

"Well, looks like we'll have to fight through them." Terron said. "I just have to get my weapon back first. Can you distract them while I do that?"

"You wanna use me as bait?!" Zekra cried. "They'll have finished me off by the time you get your bone back!"

"I can't fight unless I have my weapon!" Terron insisted. "Just work with me! It'll only be temporary!"

Before Zekra could make a statement against that, the Aipom standing closest to Terron leapt forward at him. Taking advantage of the opening, Terron quickly rushed forward and went underneath the monkey. Just as he managed to escape from the circle of Aipom, all of them began to chase after him in a crazed frenzy.

Just as all the monkeys started to chase Terron, Zekra rammed her head into the back of one of the Aipom. The feral was knocked to the ground from the sudden momentum, which gained the attention of the others. Before they could do anything, though, Zekra was quick to tackle another Aipom. She sank her fangs into one of its arms as the monkey attempted to get her off its limb with its tail hand. However, Zekra refused to let go and it only made her teeth go deeper into the flesh.

The other Aipom attempted to get her off their comrade as they started swinging punches at her. She attempted to dodge each punch and watched in amusement as some of the hits managed to hit the Aipom and not her.

"Ha ha! That's right! Keep trying to catch me!" Zekra teased.

One of the Aipom managed to land a hit on her, knocking her off her Aipom platform.

As Zekra fell, she saw all of the Aipom turning their tail hands into fists.

Her eyes grew.

"Oh dear Arceus! WHY?!"

Back with Terron, he hurried as fast as he could toward his club. It was only a few more feet away and so very close. He picked up speed and swiftly picked it up off the ground without stopping and turned back around to deal with the Aipom.

The Aipom were bombarding Zekra with attacks from their tails at a nonstop pace. Every time one had managed to finish its blows, another delivered another blow not even a second later.

Zekra was being overpowered.

"Terron! Hurry up already!" she shouted. "I swear, if you don't get over here right now, I'm going to _kill_ you later!"

Terron ran as fast as he could and then threw his club at the crowd, expecting it to hit at least one of the Aipom since they were so many. Much to his surprise, his weapon actually managed to strike not one, but _two_ of the Aipom. Both of them staggered from the sudden attack, but unfortunately, they hadn't been knocked out. They turned around to see Terron.

They let out loud shrieking cries and started running toward Terron in their rage.

Terron's weapon returned to his hand as he watched them come toward him and found he was honestly terrified of the sight. He had just realized these Aipom were going to be much tougher than the Venonat and the Spinarak he defeated. It'd take much more effort. But more frightening to him, it was the fiery glares in their eyes that showed him just how enraged they were and what that there was almost no stopping them. The only way to stop them was to knock them out.

However, Terron found he couldn't move at all. His eyes grew wide with terror as the Aipom charged at him.

_I really wish that voice was here right now! _Terron thought in a panic. _It'd know what to do! Why isn't it here now?! What's different about now than last time?!_

"_EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIII!"_

Terron felt a powerful force blow him across the mossy floor until he felt his head smack into the base of a tree. His head ached terribly from the impact and throbbed to add even more pain. He gripped his skull before slowly opening his eyes to find that the two Aipom were right in front of him. He let out a yell of surprise as one of them prepared to deliver a punch to his face with the hand on its tail.

Terron quickly ducked and felt the hand go right over his head.

Out of reaction, he kicked the abdomen of the Aipom nearest to him. It fell over from the sudden assault before clutching its gut in agony. The other Aipom turned its head to check on its comrade, which Terron took full advantage of. He no longer felt paralyzed with fear and his entire being was rushing with adrenaline.

He lifted up his foot and kicked the monkey's side and watched it fall over as well. Terron swiftly made his way to the nearest Aipom and began bashing his weapon into its skull repeatedly. A gnash started to form on its head, but just as Terron was to deliver one last blow, the other Aipom grabbed him from behind with its tail. It lifted him into the air before smashing him down into the ground. He felt his body being crushed by the intense gripping of the Aipom and the force from the ground as well as the moss getting smeared all over his face.

The crushing pain…

Terron had to make it stop.

He tried to fight back, but the monkey continuously bashed him into the ground without stopping.

But suddenly, Terron was flung down the path and tumbled backwards before managing to stop. He found he couldn't get up since he was in so much pain and his muscles wouldn't listen to him. They were too strained from the harassment they went through.

He did all he could do and opened his eyes.

Much to his surprise, he found the Aipom wasn't about to attack him or even right next to him.

It was actually a few feet away from him, trying to get Zekra off of it. She had clamped down on its ear with her teeth and seemed dead set on not letting go. The monkey thrashed around like a maniac in an attempt to free itself of the fox, but Zekra refused to give way. Claws shot out of her front paws as she put them on the head of the Aipom.

She sank the claws into the Aipom and started carving into the flesh.

Blood dripped down the sides of the Aipom's cranium.

The wild Pokémon screamed as deep scratches formed across its head, which only encouraged it to writhe even more. Unfortunately, doing so only caused Zekra's claws to rake its head even more. Slashes made their way across its face before blood began to spill. And inevitably, Zekra's claws managed to scratch over the eyes. The Aipom had to cover its eyes from the massive pain it brought.

Tears of blood coursed down its face. No doubt it had been impaired of vision permanently.

Zekra immediately brought her claws back into her paws and slammed one of them into the back of the Aipom's head. She swiftly jumped off its body as the monkey fell forward and collapsed onto the ground.

It had fainted.

Terron watched as Zekra went back to go retrieve the abandoned bag before making her way over to him. She was exhausted, but she somehow managed to keep walking without passing out. She stopped in front of him and started searching through the bag.

"I think we can both use an Oran berry right now." Zekra said as she pulled out a blue berry from the bag.

"Oran berry?" Terron asked, still finding he couldn't get up.

"It'll help you regain your strength." Zekra explained while she carefully split the berry in two with her claws. "I used to eat a lot of them when I was hunting and got into rough fights with my prey. These berries are miracle workers."

The Zorua dropped Terron's half of the berry in his mouth before she ate her half. Terron slowly chewed it, remembering that he had this kind of berry before and how it had its unique taste of all flavors at once. He slowly felt his energy return to him as he swallowed the berry and managed to get to his feet. His muscles still felt a little sore, but it was much better than how he was feeling moments before.

"What happened to the other two Aipom you were battling?" Terron asked.

"I managed to defeat them right after you lured away those other two." Zekra said proudly. "They got distracted by how their teammates ran off, so I managed to finish them off while that happened."

Terron looked around them to find that indeed, there were five Aipom scattered around that were all unconscious. Each one seemed to have a different look to them as if to show how they all fainted differently. Thankfully though, it didn't look like a massacre scene.

"So we got the stone right?" Terron asked curiously, wanting to check on it.

"Yep!" Zekra said as she peered into the bag.

"Alright, good. Let's get out of here then." Terron declared. "I don't want those Aipom waking up again and having to fight them all over again."

* * *

**Overgrowth Jungle S5**

Terron and Zekra hadn't found any more stones as they wandered through more sections of the jungle. They had run into some resistance that took on the form of two wild Seedot, but the two of them had defeated the small Pokémon easily. But otherwise, no other Pokémon had decided to bother them.

The two had begun venturing down the second path of this area of the Mystery Dungeon when they came across a remarkable sight; a single stone resting by the roots of a mighty tree growing nearby. It was a simple, grey stone that might have looked like an ordinary stone in a river bed, but by the way they reacted to it, it might as well have been a fire or thunder stone.

"It's another rock!" Zekra cheered. "Quick! Let's put it in the bag before someone gets it!"

Terron hurriedly went over to the featureless rock and picked it up in his free hand and brought it back over to Zekra. He put it inside the bag before they continued making their way down the path. Not long after they had finished this path and began a new one, another rock appeared. This time, it had more of a red shading to it, but nonetheless, it didn't look all that extraordinary. Still, Terron and Zekra grew eager upon seeing it.

It was still like a little treasure to them.

"I'll get it." Terron said before managing to retrieve the stone and putting it in the bag.

"You know, that's the second rock we've found on this area." Zekra remarked as the two continued walking. "Wonder why they're here."

"Don't know." Terron replied with a shrug. "But at least we're finding something. And hopefully one of these things are what we're looking for."

"Hopefully." Zekra said. "But hey, I'm sure one of these is what we want!"

"Yeah, then we can give it to our client and have our first mission complete." Terron said pleasantly.

"Yep!" Zekra said with a smile just as she noticed something. "Oh look! Another rock!"

* * *

**Overgrowth Jungle S6**

After having searched the entire previous floor, Terron and Zekra had found about five rocks that were stashed away safely in their bag. Thankfully, since the stones were rather small, it didn't weigh down the bag too much. It sure felt a lot heavier, but the bag was still manageable.

Some of the rocks were slightly different from the rest, but almost all of them seemed to be like a rather ordinary stone. However, to Terron and Zekra, they were still of high value since any one of the stones could have been their sought treasure.

Upon entering this section of the dungeon, Terron noticed something was quite different.

At the end of each trail, there was pitch-black. There was no light unlike the previous trails. There was light throughout the area like before, but at each trail's end, that light seemed to disappear. All that lay there was darkness. It reminded Terron of the entrance to the jungle itself where he couldn't see what was beyond the darkness.

Terron's eyes grew.

"I think this is the last floor." he stated.

"Hm?" Zekra asked.

"The exits look different this time." Terron explained. "Remember how in that other dungeon the last section had that light while the other sections didn't? Well here it's the same thing, but there's darkness."

Zekra peered at the trails with squinted eyes.

"Huh, you're right." Zekra said. "Surprised you noticed that before I did. Well, I guess since we've got a bunch of stones, we can just look for the exit this time rather than take our time. Sound good?"

"Yeah, I couldn't agree more." Terron said with a nod.

The two then went forward, attempting to find the correct exit. Terron could feel the excitement of completing his mission building up inside him and was already thinking about the reward he might get for doing this mission. He smiled at the happy thoughts and started to walk a little faster.

Zekra, who seemed rather giddy herself, seemed even quicker on her feet than the Cubone.

"_GIIIIIIIIIAAA!"_

Terron and Zekra stopped in their tracks.

A sense of dread overcame the two of them as they looked around them to see where the noise was coming from. It had to have been a feral, but no Pokémon were in sight. The two finally looked at one another.

"What was that?" Terron asked her.

"I don't know." Zekra answered worriedly. "I've never heard that kind of sound."

"Hmmmm, let's keep going then." Terron said. "Must be some Pokémon trying to scare us off or something. Let's just get to the end of this trail."

"Yeah…. Sounds like a good idea to me." Zekra nodded.

The two picked up their pace and practically began to run toward the potential exit of the dungeon. Terron suddenly had the overwhelming feeling that he was being stalked by something, but he didn't dare look behind him. He kept rushing along.

The sooner he and Zekra left this jungle the better.

_BUZZZZZZZ!_

Without warning, a large green mantis leaped out of the trees before landing right in front of them. A large blade came crashing down onto the ground where they stood, but the two were able to get away at the last second. The blade swiftly sliced into the ground before just as quickly being raised back up.

Terron and Zekra quickly got back up and found themselves staring at the sides of a large Pokémon that towered high over them. It was a mantis with strange blades that replaced its hands, having the appearance of invincible and gleaming scythes. A pair of wings grew out of its back, twitching in anticipation as if meaning it would fly soon.

"It... It's a Scyther!" Zekra cried before looking over at Terron with terror wide in her eyes. "Terron! We have to get out of here! It's going to kill us!"

"_Kill us_?!" Terron exclaimed. "That's an exaggeration, right?"

"_GIIIIIIIAAAAAAAAAA!"_

The wild Scyther let out a loud, shrill cry before slicing its blades at Zekra. She yelped in terror as she just barely maneuvered out of the way, the blades missing her by an inch.

"Run Terron!" Zekra screamed. _**"RUN!"**_

Terron didn't hesitate. He took off toward the end of the trail, his heart pounding furiously.

However, the Scyther was quick to react to the fleeing. It sped toward Terron, its wings buzzing as it put its blades into a scissor lock.

Terron didn't have to look behind him to know that the Scyther was only a few feet behind him.

He could _feel_ that Scyther's presence starting to gain on him.

_Buzz!_

The Scyther was five feet behind Terron.

_BUZZ!_

The Scyther was three feet behind Terron.

_**BUZZZZZZ!**_

"_GIIIIIIAAAAA!"_

_**SLASH!**_

The blades of the Scyther struck.

_**CLANG!**_

Terron didn't feel anything strike him.

He stopped and turned around.

Another Scyther was holding back the feral Scyther's blades with its own.

It trembled from the power it had to push back, but it didn't let the power overcome it.

The Scyther turned its head and saw Terron standing there, frozen in place.

"Get out of here!" the Scyther yelled, its voice sounding quite familiar. "I'll hold this Scyther off until you get close to the exit!"

Terron suddenly saw the furry tail sticking out of the Scyther.

He brought his glance back up to Zekra. There was a pleading expression in her eyes.

"What about you?!" Terron cried. "I'm not going to leave you with a killer Pokémon!"

"Forget about me!" Zekra insisted. "I can take care of myself! I can hold this Scyther off! Just get going!"

"But you'll-"

"_**STOP ARGUING AND RUN!" **_Zekra shouted, a snarl forming on her face. _**"JUST-"**_

The feral Scyther suddenly pushed Zekra backwards with more force, managing to knock her to the ground. She landed on Terron, knocking them both to the ground.

Terron frantically started to get himself out from under Zekra's Scyther body.

He was desperate to escape from this monster.

Terron managed to get his head out.

He looked at the Scyther.

Every muscle in Terron's body stopped moving.

Every thought in his mind became frozen.

His eyes wouldn't blink and remained wide open.

_**SLASH! **_

With one blade, the wild Scyther sliced Zekra's throat.

_**SLASH!**_

And with the other blade, the wild Scyther sliced Terron's throat.


	9. Chapter 8: Many Things to Learn

**Chapter 8**

**Many Things to Learn**

* * *

There was nothing.

Terron couldn't get his eyes to open, but somehow, he knew it didn't matter. Nothing existed around him. He could feel the nothingness bearing down on him.

He couldn't move. He couldn't struggle. He could only lay upon the strange floor of nothingness beneath him.

_Hello? _ Terron tried to call out. _Is anyone there?_ _Where am I?_

His words rang through the empty void. They were not words that escaped his tongue, but rather, his thoughts. Somehow, his thoughts were being projected into the world he found himself in.

Just then, someone else's words quietly filled the darkness around Terron.

… _**Why…**_

The voice seemed to be coming from every direction. However, the words were distant, seemingly having a difficult time getting to Terron.

…_**Why are you… here?**_

_I don't know. I don't even know where I am. Can you tell me where I am?_

… _**Ter…ron…**_

_Terron? That's… that's my name… how do you know my name?_

_**Ter… ron… why…**_

… _**Why… did… you… come…**_

_Why aren't you answering my questions? Who are you even?_

_**Ter… ron…**_

_Can you even hear me?_

_**Go… back…**_

_What?_

_**Ter…ron…**_

_**Ne… ver…**_

_**Re…turn.**_

_What are you talking about? Who are you? Why should I never come back? What is this place?! Answer me!_

_**Ne…ver…**_

_**Come…**_

_**Back…**_

* * *

Terron's eyes snapped open as he inhaled sharply. His heart was pounding at a furious pace. He slowly took deep breaths to calm himself before he noticed where he was. He was resting on soft grass and looking up at an endless sky of blue. A peaceful light shined down upon him from within the blue, nearly blinding him. A pleasant breeze swept past him.

He slowly sat up, not feeling the slightest bit sore or injured. Surely he must have been dead. He had been attacked by a Scyther and it had cut him in two.

There was no doubt. He could still remember the feel of those blades slicing into him.

This had to be where the dead Pokémon went.

As Terron's epiphany dawned upon him, it was then that he noticed something he hadn't seen earlier.

In front of him stood the opening to Overgrowth Jungle.

The Mystery Dungeon he had been killed in.

Yet there it was, as it was when he saw it when he was still alive. Words couldn't describe his shock. There was no way he could have escaped.

Terron checked his body to see if he had any cuts on him from the Scyther attack. Much to his surprise, his body was whole. Not a single scratch was on him nor were there any scars. It was as if he was reborn with his body's former glory.

Perhaps he, in spirit form, was revisiting the last place he had been to before he would depart to the true spirit world.

Terron then noticed that his scarf was gone. It was no longer tied around his neck. He had tied it so securely so that there was no way it could come off, but that was no longer such as it was gone.

Terron began to look around to see if the scarf was nearby, but instead found another body sprawled along the ground next to him.

The body of a Zorua.

"Zekra!" Terron shouted frantically.

He quickly rushed over to her and began shaking her in an attempt to wake her up. Surprisingly enough, he could actually feel her. She was tangible, as his hands weren't sinking into her body. Perhaps even though he was a mere spirit, other spirits could feel whole to him as if they were made of actual flesh. Zekra had died when Terron had, so to him, that was understandable.

Zekra stirred with an uncomfortable frown. It seemed to take some effort, but eventually she was able to release herself from the dark depths of insentience.

Just like Terron, she was completely unharmed. Unlike Terron though, she still had her scarf tied around her, though tattered at the edges.

"Terron?" Zekra asked tiredly as she rubbed her eyes. "Is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me." Terron said with a relieved sigh before a more troubling thought overtook him. "What happened to us though? Are we… _dead_?"

Terron began to feel unnerved after saying that. The idea of him being dead just wasn't right.

"Dead?" Zekra asked curiously, though uneasiness was beginning to enter her voice. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, do you remember what happened after the Scyther managed push you back?" Terron asked cautiously, secretly hoping that perhaps Zekra could disprove his theory about their current state.

"Ummm." the Zorua said before she began to think back on the incident. "I remember I got knocked down. And… I started getting up… but the Scyther…"

Zekra's eyes grew as she began to realize what Terron was talking about.

"No, that can't be right…" Zekra whispered in disbelief. "No… it's not true. Otherwise… Terron… and Fen…"

"What is it?" Terron asked anxiously, though trying his hardest not to sound worried.

"No! There's no way we're dead!" Zekra cried. "No! I'm not dead! I'm still alive! I know I am!"

"But we got decapitated by a Scyther!" Terron stated. "How _could _we survive that?"

"I don't know, but we're not dead!" Zekra insisted. "Otherwise, we wouldn't be right outside the jungle! We'd be somewhere else… with others!"

Zekra glanced over toward the dungeon before immediately getting to her feet and taking off. It seemed as though she was going to re-enter the dungeon.

"Hey! Don't go back in there!" Terron shouted as he chased after her. "Zekra!"

Zekra didn't answer. Instead, she continued to scurry away. Terron managed to stay a short distance behind her, but found he couldn't quite catch up with her. Before long, Zekra had managed to get right near the entry of the jungle.

However, instead of entering into the dungeon, she stopped in front of a particular item; their Fellowship bag. It was intact and unharmed just as they were. Terron caught up to Zekra and stopped next to her, panting. He was about to yell at her, but then he noticed their bag as well.

"What's this doing here?" Terron wondered. "I think I had the bag last, but I don't know how this would get here."

Zekra gave an intense glare to the bag before she put one of her paws on it. Much to Terron's surprise, her paw didn't phase through.

Zekra opened the bag just a crack, only for her to gasp once she peered inside. She swiftly flung the cover panel of the messenger bag open so that it smacked lightly against the opposite side of the bag. With the bag completely exposed and all of its contents seeable, Terron could see what was wrong.

"Where'd everything go?!" Terron asked in disbelief.

There were barely any contents within the bag. Though there hadn't been much in the bag before the Scyther incident, seeing almost everything missing was a crushing blow to the two. All of the stones they had collected along the way were gone. It was at this time that Terron realized his weapon was missing as well.

He felt a longing for the club, but it quickly subsided once he brought his mind back to the matter at hand.

The only items that remained were a couple of the berries given to them by Emdox, one apple, and miraculously, their map and mission assignment.

"All of that hard work…" Zekra muttered before closing the bag. "And it's gone."

Zekra closed her eyes and put the strap of the bag over her shoulder.

Terron couldn't tell whether she was angry or depressed.

The expression on her face was just… empty.

"Let's just go back to Aurora Town." Zekra said lowly. "We still have to report our failure."

"But, how are we supposed to talk to anyone if we are dead?" Terron then asked. "I mean, I know you say we're not dead, but there's still the possibility that-"

Zekra glanced at Terron, gritting her teeth and making her eyes slightly narrower.

"We're not dead, Terron." Zekra answered firmly. "Stop saying that. If we were dead… my old friends would be here."

Terron didn't say anything.

Zekra then glanced at the ground, the tension in her eyes lessening.

"No one's here for us." Zekra said quietly. "Not my friends. Not even my parents."

Zekra then went forward, heading back to town. Terron silently followed behind her.

* * *

**Aurora Town Fellowship**

After a long and wordless trip back to their beloved city, Zekra and Terron made their way up through the long flights of stairs within the Fellowship base. Hardly anyone was around due to it being the afternoon, which was good for them since it allowed them to travel more easily.

However, neither of the two were thinking about this happy circumstance.

All Terron could think about was how he had made Zekra share her grim thoughts with him for being so set on thinking they were dead. Zekra no longer seemed irritated with him, but Terron knew it was because she was occupied with more troubling thoughts.

She was no doubt still disheartened about the failure.

Terron, too, felt upset about how they failed at their first mission, but Zekra was taking it harder. She seemed the most enthusiastic about the mission before they were somehow kicked out of the dungeon and stripped of their supplies.

Eventually, the two found themselves outside the Registration office. The two stood in front of the door, hesitant to enter.

Neither wanted to tell Emdox that they had failed their first mission.

Terron and Zekra stood there, looking at the small cracks forming on the wooden door.

Barely a few seconds passed though before the door opened to reveal Emdox, looking down upon the children with pity.

A sigh escaped his beak as he opened the door wider.

"Come inside." the Xatu said. "There's no need to stay out here."

Reluctantly, the Cubone and Zorua went into the room as Emdox gently closed the door behind them. Once they were all in, he led them over to the front desk.

"Well, I suppose we'll have to repost this assignment in case any other teams want to try it." Emdox said. "Can I see your mission assignment?"

Zekra dug through the bag until she managed to find the piece of paper. She then handed it to the oversized bird.

"Don't feel so bad." Emdox said gently. "Everyone doesn't do everything perfectly. There are plenty of failures in life. Besides, we're not going to punish you just because you had a mess up. We're not cruel and unreasonable Pokémon. We're very understanding."

Just then, the door opened and Bane and Rayne walked into the room. Rayne was once again sitting on the Arcanine's head, due to the massive size difference.

"Hey Emdox, we wanted to talk to you." Bane started to say. "We were thinking about-"

It was then that he noticed Terron and Zekra in the room. He stopped walking and looked down at the two of them with an odd glance.

"Oh, hello there." Bane said. "What are you two doing here?"

"I'm afraid they're depressed over failing their mission." Emdox sighed. "I'm trying to make them feel better, but they're both stuck in their gloomy thoughts. Well… Terron anyway. I can't be sure with Zekra, but her facial expressions seem to be giving a clear message."

Rayne jumped off Bane's head before going over to the two. She put her hands on each of their shoulders and smiled softly at the two of them.

"You guys don't have to feel so bad about not succeeding in your first mission." Rayne said. "Why, when Bane and I had to do our first mission shortly after we joined Team Valor, we failed it as well."

Terron and Zekra looked at her, their eyes growing with a surprise.

"You did?" Terron asked curiously.

"Yeah, not exactly out most pleasant memory, but it's still nice to laugh at sometimes." Bane then said. "Rayne and I were once sent on our first task together since the other members who didn't really have positions here were busy. Because let's see… King was out in the wild to supply meat for the larder, Éclair and Ragnor were on a different mission, Vantis was visiting one of the other Fellowships, Jade was doing… something, and Garter… what was he doing?"

"Garter wasn't a member yet." Rayne answered. "He didn't come until a few years after we did."

"Oh yeah, that's right." Bane said with a chuckle. "Memory's getting fuzzy. But anyway, Rayne and I had to go get one of our members. They got lost in some forest Mystery Dungeon, so we had to go hunt them down and bring them back. We knew it was a rather lengthy dungeon, but we were confident that we'd make it through. And we did pretty well for the first few floors. We annihilated every kind of resistance in sight."

"Though Bane went just a _bit_ overdrive." Rayne added with a smile. "I'm pretty sure Bane would have burned down the entire dungeon had I not put out his fires."

Bane let out a snort.

"I personally think the dungeon would have been better if everything was ashes." Bane remarked.

"Yeah, well anyway, we were about halfway through the dungeon when things started going out of our favor." Rayne continued. "Most of our supplies got stolen by some wild Pokémon when we weren't looking and we ran into a lot of tough Pokémon that took a very long time to beat. We kept going, thinking we would find who we were looking for and get out of there, but…"

Rayne's ears started to droop awkwardly.

"We came into a room filled with a bunch of Pokémon." Rayne then said. "There had to be at least thirty Pokémon, all of them being incredibly tough. There were Raichu, and Breloom, and Sceptile, and even a Pinsir! Oh, it was such a horrible experience! Seeing all of those Pokémon ganging up on us all at once still gives me nightmares! We started fighting them at first… but it started becoming rather obvious that we weren't going to win against that mob. We kept fighting though until we literally had no strength left. And then just when they were going to finish us off, Bane pulled out an Escape Orb and got us out of the dungeon. And our client remained stuck in the dungeon until King and Vantis went to do the job."

"And then you two came to me and whined to me about the awful experience." Emdox said. "And you wouldn't leave, even after I told you I knew what happened. You insisted on telling me the story despite the fact that I was watching the entire thing within your minds."

"We just wanted to vent out our frustrations!" Rayne cried.

"Of course, doing so wasn't exactly our best idea since you ended up telling everyone about our mess up right after." Bane said with a scowl.

"What can I say?" Emdox shrugged. "Your story made an interesting topic."

"But anyway, the point is that we failed our first mission as well, but we ended up okay." Rayne then said to the children. "I mean, we're the leaders! We're some of the strongest Pokémon here, and we were just like you two at one point! And we still fail missions or assignments sometimes."

"Like how Rayne failed at delivering goods to one of the other Fellowships because she forgot the stuff." Bane chuckled.

"It never happened again though!" Rayne interjected. "But back to what I was saying. You two can have failures. It's going to happen whether it's your first mission or when you're an expert like us. It's inevitable. However, as long as you learn from those failures, then those failures are okay to make."

"But we didn't really learn much from our failure." Zekra then said. "Well, except not to mess with Scyther and to know what the item we're looking for looks like."

"See? You did learn something." Emdox pointed out. "Still, you might not _always_ learn like Rayne is saying, but failure is going to happen, and you just need to learn how to press on if that's the case. So, don't feel bad. It happens. Just move on and try harder next time."

"Well, you guys do have a point." Zekra replied. "I guess even if Team Valor has failures, then it's not something to be too upset over."

"Exactly!" Emdox cheered.

Terron and Zekra seemed to brighten up a little, causing the others to smile happily.

"Good to see that our newest members are no longer depressed." Bane then said. "I just remembered though that there's a quick errand Rayne and I need to go run. We'll talk to you later though about what we wanted to talk about."

"Alright, I will see you two later!" Emdox said as he gave a friendly wave.

Bane lowered his head and let Rayne climb onto his head. Once she was seated comfortably on his fluffy head, the two went out the door and gave their own waves of goodbye. When the two were gone, Emdox looked back at Terron and Zekra.

"Alright, so I'm finished with you two." he said. "You are free to go."

"Okay. Thank you for cheering us up, though." Terron said with a smile.

"It's no problem!" Emdox said. "Team Valor never likes to see our fellow members feeling down. Feel free to come back anytime if you feel hopeless or sad or something. Or I'll just find you since your gloomy thoughts will reach me so easily."

"Yeah… thanks." Terron said awkwardly.

"Well, let's get going, Terron." Zekra then said, her voice much lighter than before. "I think we could probably get some late lunch if we hurry to the cafeteria."

Terron nodded in agreement before the two started to make their way toward the door. After Zekra had exited the room first, Terron started to exit as well.

"Wait, Terron." Emdox then said.

Terron stopped and looked back at the Xatu. He was still standing behind his counter like before, but there seemed to be something different about him. Something in his eyes was different.

"Yeah, what is it?" the Cubone asked.

"You're not a Pokémon." Emdox said, his voice sounding very cautious for some reason. "You… You're a human."

Terron froze up. He couldn't talk.

However, upon hearing these words, he began to remember how he wanted to ask Emdox about his memories. Under normal circumstances, he would have asked Emdox to help with that. Yet right now, Emdox's strange tone was holding Terron back.

Terron shouldn't have felt so paralyzed.

He anticipated that Emdox would find out.

That was different now that Emdox's attitude had suddenly changed.

"You don't remember anything about yourself, do you?" Emdox then asked.

Terron slowly shook his head.

Emdox stared at Terron for a long time. He didn't blink at all.

"… I can't help you with your amnesia, 'Terron'." Emdox said after a while. "I've dealt with someone with amnesia before… and I've found that when your mind doesn't want you to access your memories, it won't let outsiders access it either. I knew you wanted my help yesterday, but I didn't think it was because you were a _human_ with amnesia. All your thoughts said was that you wanted help remembering lost memories."

Emdox paused.

Terron still said nothing.

"So… human… my psychic abilities can't find your lost memories." Emdox said. "You will have to find those on your own."

Terron cast his eyes downward.

"You'd best go join your friend again." Emdox suggested. "She's probably wondering where you are."

Terron nodded silently and headed for the door.

Once he exited the room, he found Zekra standing there by the nearby staircase. Once she noticed Terron, she came rushing over to him.

"Hey, where'd you go?" Zekra asked curiously. "I was heading for the cafeteria, but then I noticed you weren't with me anymore. Something happen?"

Terron looked at Zekra. She seemed cheerful again, which was a welcome change from her previous attitude.

He tried to make himself appear less down and confused.

"Just talking to Emdox about my amnesia since he was a psychic." Terron answered. "He said he couldn't really help I'm afraid."

"Aw, well that's too bad." Zekra said, frowning in disappointment. "I really thought a psychic could help."

"Yeah, but I'm not too upset about it." Terron then said, lying not just to her, but himself. "I'll get my memories back. You'll see. Just need to wait and see, I suppose."

"If you say so." Zekra replied. "Well, you wanna get some food then? Shouldn't be too many Pokémon."

"Yeah, I could use something to eat." Terron said. "So yeah, let's get something then."

Zekra smiled before the two started heading downstairs. As they walked, Terron still felt bothered by the strange way Emdox was talking to him, but he tried to get it out of his thoughts.

After the two had received their meals in the cafeteria, the two sat down at the nearest table.

The two then engaged in friendly conversations, talking about random topics, which greatly helped Terron feel better as well.

About half an hour had gone by when a familiar face came up to the still-eating duo and sat at their table.

Terron and Zekra stopped eating their food instantly as soon as they saw the Pokémon.

It was King. He didn't have any sort of meal on him, which was odd since that seemed to be the only reason why anyone _would_ be in the cafeteria.

"Hello there, children." King greeted, his voice sounding just as uncaring and near emotionless as it had when they first met him.

"Ummm, hi, King." Zekra said. "What are you doing here?"

"I came here to find you two since I heard about your most recent mission." King answered.

"And?" Zekra asked.

King eyed the two children, causing Terron to shrink a bit. The Cubone felt terrified of King since the very air around him was tense. Terron figured they were going to get yelled at thanks to the failure of their mission. The two children waited to see what was to become of them. Zekra stood there with a confused stare while Terron practically trembled in fear.

"Stop your worrying." King said in a near demanding voice. "I came to tell you that I'm going to 'help' you two on your next mission."

Terron and Zekra's jaws dropped.

"_**WHAT?"**_ Terron and Zekra both cried loudly.

"Since Emdox is a complete chatterbox, he told me that you failed your mission." King explained. "No, correction, he told me about your _**entire experience**_ with the mission. He told it in such detail, that I would have thought he was a part of the mission had I not known he does this with every story he tells. After listening to his take on your mission, however, I realized you two have many things to learn. _**Many things.**_"

"Like what?" Zekra asked. "We were basically fine until that Scyther came!"

"Attempting to explain what you should have done during your mission wouldn't do you any good." King replied. "The only way you're going to learn is if you learn while experiencing it."

"So you're going to come with us tomorrow?" Terron then asked. "Don't you have a job here?"

"I have most of the day to myself on that day." King answered. "Sometimes, I get time off since the members of my team switch job positions to give the others breaks. So, I decided that I'd assist our newest members."

"Thanks I suppose." Zekra said awkwardly. "But we don't really need you to come. I think we can figure out what to do on our own next time."

"Sorry, but I've come to the conclusion that you _do _need someone to help you… _children_." King interjected.

Zekra scowled.

"No, no we don't!" Zekra insisted. "Team Vendetta can do things on their own! We don't need your help!"

Zekra let out a growl of frustration as she slammed her paws onto the table.

The table rattled loudly, causing the plates to move a few inches from the vibrations.

King wasn't fazed by her small tantrum.

"If Team Vendetta could do things on their own, they would have not failed their first mission." the Bisharp said coldly.

Zekra flinched at the remark. When she recovered, her frown of contempt grew, but she didn't say anything. Terron knew that it was because she saw some truth in King's words.

"You have the rest of the day to yourselves." King said as he got up. "Enjoy it while you can because tomorrow, your time is with me."

King then went away and disappeared from their sight, leaving behind an unsure Cubone and an irritated Zorua at the table.


	10. Chapter 9: Brutal Mentoring

**Chapter 9**

**Brutal Mentoring**

* * *

"It's time, children."

Terron opened his eyes just a peek. He was curled up on the floor of his bedroom. Resting nearby was a still slumbering Zekra. The room was dark, as dawn had not come yet. Seeing this, he closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

"I _saw_ you open your eyes. Get up!"

Terron closed his eyes tighter to ignore the voice. He didn't want to wake up. He wanted a few more hours of sleep, especially since he had gone to bed rather late last night.

"_**GET YOUR CARASSES OFF THE FLOOR AND WAKE UP BEFORE I SLICE YOUR LIMBS OFF!"**_

Terron and Zekra woke up instantly in a fright, scrambling to get to their feet as they panicked at the violent yelling. They breathed rapidly as they tried to compose themselves. They no longer felt sleepy, as all of their nerves were rushing with fear.

"Good, seems you two are finally awake." the voice said in a satisfied tone.

The two brought their gaze to the doorway to find King was standing there with a lit candle in his hand and a large backpack strapped onto him where his razors wouldn't slice it open. He looked down upon them, the fiery glow radiating from the candle giving his face an ominous appearance.

It was then that Terron realized exactly what today was and why King was with the two of them; today was the day he would be their guide for their mission.

While Terron started to grow a bit anxious, Zekra scowled and stared at King with a dark expression.

She was still mad about having to be tutored by the Bisharp.

"Why are we up an hour before dawn?" Zekra asked. "No one's awake right now."

"This is the time the rest of Team Valor wakes up for their day." King replied. "And because you are being trained temporarily by a member of that team, you're going to be woken up at that time. That brings me to your first lesson; always wake up earlier than the majority of everyone else. This way, you can get more done in the day and can avoid the mass amount of traffic running through the base. Now, follow me. Leave your bag here since you're not going to need it."

The Bisharp lead the two down the stairs and to the tree that held the Bulletin Board with the various job postings. Terron did his best to keep his composure; on the inside, he didn't feel thrilled about the idea of having the Bisharp bossing them around all day. Hopefully, it wouldn't be as bad as he thought.

Once the three got to the board, King stopped and looked upon the various missions they could choose from. Once he had done that, he glanced back at the two children with him and gestured to the board with his free hand.

"Alright, how do you select the missions you want to do for the day?" King asked them. "What do you two do?"

"Well last time, we just chose it by how close the place was." Terron answered. "And by how familiar the place was compared to another Mystery Dungeon we had been in."

"Another mistake you've made, I see." King said nonchalantly. "Afraid that's not a very wise selection process. While choosing a location can be important, it's more of a preference than being of actual importance. The type of environment and its distance aren't very important for you. What _should _be the deciding factors in selecting your mission are the reward of the mission and the hazard level."

"Hazard level?" Terron repeated.

"Yes, it means exactly how challenging the mission is." King explained. "It factors in how deadly the feral creatures are, how many floors it may have if it's a Mystery Dungeon, and many more factors. Judging by how you two are, you children are probably suitable for level 'D' missions and below."

"What does level D mean?" Terron asked curiously.

"Amateur level." King answered curtly. "One rank higher than the ultimate amateur level known as 'E'."

Terron frowned hard, but it was Zekra that showed the most spite in her snarl. Her eyes even seemed to glow a brighter blue while a pink light rippled through her fur.

"Don't bother to defend your pride." the Bisharp remarked. "Even if you are more skilled than other children, you are still weak among the Fellowship members who have had training for years, some even decades. Compared to them, you two are amateurs. Do not deny it. I refuse to sugarcoat the truth about your skills."

Zekra's illusion light only seemed to intensify, but she held herself back from saying anything. All that came out of her mouth were frustrated growls.

"Moving onto the actual assignments." King then said, ignoring Zekra's rage.

He resumed his focus to the board and made Terron and Zekra do the same. Despite the fact that there weren't any beams of sunlight to offer light, the candle in King's grasp offered enough light. It was the bare minimal amount to see the footprint runes etched along the various papers, but the writing could at least be seen.

"What kind of assignments have you seen before and now?" King asked the two.

"Rescue missions for Pokémon who got lost, getting items for Pokémon who lost things, and some escort missions." Terron answered. "That looked like all there was from what I remember."

"Yes, and there are others as well that are just as simplistic in what to do." the Bisharp stated. "Like the one I have selected for you two last night."

He put his candle in the other hand to show that he had a piece of paper folded neatly in his hand; he had held onto it while holding the candle. King carefully unfolded the paper before laying it out on the ground for the two to see. Terron looked over at Zekra, waiting to see what she would say about the assignment since he couldn't understand any of it.

"Delivery assignment…" Zekra said lowly, though confusion was apparent in her voice.

"Delivery?" Terron asked. "What are we delivering?"

"As you personally know, the Fellowship needs to gather information about the Plagued Ones no matter where it may be or who gives it to us. Sometimes, no matter the cost as well." King explained. "There are some creatures who have knowledge of such that we need. Sometimes they simply come here after a request from us or they come to us naturally to share the information. However… there are some creatures who are willing to give us information, but they are criminals, like this one on the mission from what I can assume."

"Wait, what?!" Terron cried. "Criminals?!"

"Yes." King said with indifference. "And most of the time, we talk to these criminals after they have escaped from prison. We have to meet up with them at rendezvous points so they won't get caught by authorities, most commonly Mystery Dungeons. However, we also have to pay them to make them talk most of the time. Usually, their payment is something illegal-"

"Wait, so you're saying that we cooperate with Pokémon who have broken the law to get information…" Terron interrupted, trying to get all of this shocking news verified. "And not only do we not arrest them and let them go free, but we PAY them with something off the Black Market?! WHY?!"

"Desperate times call for desperate measures." King answered firmly. "But, we only do so because we have an urgent mission to fulfill. We do the wrong thing for the right reasons."

"But we're letting criminals free, and paying them with illegal stuff!" Terron exclaimed. "You expect me to learn to accept that?!"

"Yes, I do." King answered with a frown. "Otherwise you'll never fit into the Fellowship. So deal with it."

Terron started mumbling to himself, fuming with disgust at the revelation. Zekra didn't seem to care about the revelation, probably because she was more occupied with other thoughts.

King took the mission assignment from off the floor and held it up in front of himself.

"This mission takes place in a Mystery Dungeon known as the Jolton Cave." King said. "It says _'Deliver requested Thunderstone to a Raichu and his unnamed friend on floor B11 of the Jolton Cave Mystery Dungeon in exchange for information regarding the Plagued Ones. Ask any member of Team Valor for the item. Do not display item in public. Hazard Level: D'_. Yes, just as I thought, he's a criminal since he's in a Mystery Dungeon. And he wants something off the Black Market to add. Now, according to the research I've done on this place, there are a wide variety of rock, steel, and electric creatures and a few of the ground typing as well. That's your next lesson; always research the place you're going to visit. It'll save you from fear and anxiety since you'll know what to expect. Unless of course you're going on a mission where you have to go explore an uncharted location. In that case, simply use logic."

Terron and Zekra silently nodded, too caught up in their own emotions to actually answer.

"Good. Now, even though I've already packed our supplies for the trip as well as the item request, I'm going to show you where to get those supplies." King said. "Even if you don't have any supplies yet. However, we'll get breakfast first since it's always a good idea to start your day with a healthy meal. We'll also get you a weapon, Cubone child. You're basically defenseless without that at this point."

Terron didn't know how to respond to that. Instead, he and Zekra silently followed King to the mess hall.

* * *

After half an hour of eating, the three finished their meals and headed into another area of town. During that time, Zekra and Terron had managed to cool down enough so that they were speaking again. They weren't exactly _happy_ to be with King, but they had managed to develop a type of tolerance. After all, if they were going to spend most of the day with him, they had to learn how to put up with the Bisharp's attitude.

"So, why are Thunderstones on the Black Market?" Zekra asked. "Are they illegal or something?"

"Not exactly." King answered. "The Thunderstones, as well as the other evolutionary stones such as the Fire and Dusk stones, are running scarce. Evolution such as what we can accomplish when we reach certain requirements, still happen, whatever those requirements may be. However, those that require the stones to give them the power necessary to evolve aren't so lucky. I can only imagine that nature simply hasn't been able to forge enough to keep up with creatures' demands, but nonetheless, there aren't enough for everyone. Due to that, they're not allowed to be sold legally because of the stealing of such stones are all too frequent. So, the stones go to the Black Market since there are no rules against such. They're also sold there because if you try to steal one from the Black Market, you _will_ be brutally beaten or killed rather than get arrested in a legal market. There are no rules against doing that to shoplifters in the world of the underground market."

"But how do you guys afford to get them?" Zekra wondered. "Surely you Pokémon aren't that rich. Do you get them from somewhere else too?"

"Oh yes we do." King answered in a dark tone. "We get them in places and ways besides the market that I won't explain to you. Though, I have no doubts that you'll be discovering that for yourself."

"Ummm, okay." Zekra said unsurely.

The three made their way into the section of town that was known for having more shops than anywhere else. Dawn had just come upon them and allowed the group to see more clearly. There were a few Pokémon walking around to perhaps take care of errands, but most of the shops weren't open. The once lit torches hung on the sides of the buildings were now dying with only a few embers burning and a thin stream of smoke exiting the burnt wood. It was apparent that not too many more Pokémon were going to wake up anytime soon despite the signs of morning.

The group eventually made their way over to one shop that appeared to be open. However, it was hard to say since the shop didn't exactly have much of an appearance. There was simply a counter with a sign on it and then behind that counter, a giant hole that lead deep underground. Even with the sun out, Terron couldn't see past the darkness of the hole. He couldn't tell how deep it was or what was in there.

"Why'd you bring us to a giant hole in the ground?" Terron asked.

"To show you where to go when you actually get funds and where to store them." King answered. "This is the bank."

"This is a bank?!" Terron cried. "How?"

"Why hello there!" a friendly voice greeted.

A Sandslash popped out of the hole Terron had been staring at. He immediately jumped back in surprise and toppled over, causing the Sandslash to laugh as it came up to the counter to speak with the three.

"Sorry about that." the Sandslash said as he tried to compose himself. "It's just so funny watching Pokémon coming here for the first time and seeing their faces when I appear."

"Yeah…" Terron muttered as he got to his feet.

"This is Roark." King explained. "He runs the bank here. He and many more Sandslash have an underground network where they store your funds for you and thanks to the network, you can also withdraw or deposit your Poké at any city in Shiron. They always know which amount of Poké is yours somehow."

"Well not every city." Roark corrected. "There's some we don't cover. And then of course there are the islands surrounding Shiron that we can't get to since it's in the ocean. Can't make tunnels through water! But who do you have with you today, King? Never seen their faces before."

"These children are new recruits to the Fellowship." King replied. "I decided to show them the necessary preparations needed for the days as well as how to survive in the dungeons."

"Oh, helping out the children are you? That's a new thing for you." Roark said with a smile. "You never seemed to care when the other recruits who were _much_ older than these two would have difficulty."

"It's to make sure these two don't screw up again." King insisted with a scoff. "It's the very basics I'm teaching. I'm not going to teach them how to take out Dialga or anything like that. I'm turning these two into decent Fellowship members… even if they'll have the bare minimal standards for decent members when I'm done with them for the day."

"Whatever you say, King." the Sandslash said with a shrug. "So I'm guessing you want me to open up an account for them?"

"They don't have funds yet." King explained as he glanced down at the two for a second. "I'm simply showing them the place. However, later today an account will have to be opened. After today's mission, that is."

"Oh, I see." Roark said with a nod. "Alright. I'll be waiting for you three then! And what might your names be, children?"

"I'm Zekra." Zekra introduced with a small smile.

"And I'm Terron." Terron added. "Nice to meet you, Roark."

"Nice to meet you as well." the Sandslash beamed before looking at Terron curiously. "And what kind of Pokémon are you, if you don't mind me asking?"

Terron let out a quiet sigh.

"Cubone." he replied.

"Hmmm I see." Roark said with a nod. "Okay then. Just curious. I look forward to seeing you two again later today though. Have fun on your mission!"

Roark then crawled back into his hole and disappeared out of sight.

"Alright, two more places left to show you." King said to the children. "This way."

The three walked down the street for a few more minutes in silence until they eventually came to a stop in front of another store. Unlike the bank though, this one was stood out much more by having the shape and appearance of an Ampharos head. Where the mouth should have been on the head, there was an entrance. However, the doors were shut tight and a sign on the front showed that the business was closed.

"This is the Storage Center." King explained. "Here you can store your possessions and they'll make sure that it's kept safe. You can also withdraw any items that are yours. As you can see though, it's closed. This place won't open until mid-morning. That is why I recommend that on the day before your mission, you come here and gather your supplies while this place isn't crowded. The same goes for what time you should select your mission assignment, as well as the last place I'd like the show you."

King began walking without telling the two, causing Terron and Zekra to quickly follow after the Bisharp. They all went further into town until they came to another section of town quite a ways from the Storage and Bank. Here, Terron and Zekra saw that this area was dedicated to many different kinds of shops. There were buildings modeled after Pokémon as usual, and then there were small booths that sold many mysterious items. Just like with the Storage Center though, nobody was open. All of the stands and buildings were vacant of their workers.

"This is the market place." King stated. "Surrounding you are many merchants who all sell different goods. Depending on what you want, you'll have to decide which you'll buy from. However, I recommend the Kecleon Market for most of your purchases since they're purposely set up to sell items for dungeon crawling. Of course, still look at the others. They might have something you may find useful. Like for you Cubone child, a skull helmet."

"They sell those here?" Terron asked in surprise.

"Perhaps." the Bisharp said. "But either way, I recommend you get one of those soon. Cubone and Marowak prize their helmets because it gives them a strong, offensive edge in battle as well as defensive. I've seen a Marowak once smash its head into solid diamond and shatter the jewel into pieces, yet the Marowak wasn't fazed at all. I've also heard that the helmets serve as efficient lightning rods and can protect others from the crippling power of electricity. The helmets of your kind are valuable tools in battle. Do not hesitate to get one as soon as possible."

Terron nodded slowly. Secretly, he had wanted a helmet ever since he came to Aurora Town. Pokémon were always staring at him oddly because they didn't recognize exactly what he was. It was a pain having to deal with that. Having this helmet would change that problem and not only that, but it would make him stronger. Terron could see himself ramming his head into a giant stone and obliterating it without a single scratch on him.

A wave of excitement overcame him, though he wasn't sure whether it was coming from him or the inner Cubone within him.

"I'll keep my eyes out." Terron assured. "Hopefully it's affordable."

"Good." King said in a pleased tone. "Now, I've finished showing you all of the places you need to visit before going on a mission. Now what time should you be visiting these places again?"

"The day before we go on the actual mission." Zekra answered. "What time do these places close though?"

"Typically three hours after sunset." the Bisharp replied. "However, most of your missions shouldn't last until that time if you leave now each day. You should have your mission over by the afternoon."

"Alright, got it." Zekra said.

"I've finished showing your preparations. It's time to go on the mission." King declared before pulling out a map from his backpack. "Jolton Cave is our destination. Point it out for me on this map."

He lowered the map to the ground and watched as Zekra began browsing through all of the writing as she put her paw on Aurora Town. After a minute of searching, Zekra put her paw over a small cave illustration. Terron noticed that this location was actually quite far from Aurora Town when compared to Overgrowth Jungle. It was north of Aurora Town.

"Here it is." Zekra replied. "It's… kinda far away though."

"No, far away is going to the East coast of Shiron when we reside in the West coast segment of the land." King argued. "Though, the East coast is being taken care of by the Oracion Village Fellowship while we only manage the West coast area anyway. So we don't have to worry about that. Anyway, getting to this dungeon will hardly take any time at all."

"But if we have to walk, it'll take days!" Zekra complained.

"I'll have you know that there actually _is_ another way to get to your missions." the Bisharp stated with a scoff. "I can't believe you don't actually know about it. Everybody in the Fellowship knows. Everybody in every Fellowship knows."

Zekra's tolerance gave way to her exasperation. Her eyes glared in complete frustration.

"We've barely been in the Fellowship for a few days!" Zekra cried. "How could we ever know that there was another way to get to Mystery Dungeons?! And you haven't even told us what it is!"

The Bisharp let out a sigh.

"I suppose I'll let you get away with an excuse like that." King said.

King's reaction caught Zekra off guard. She immediately calmed down and looked at King in confusion.

"Your lack of knowledge on this particular circumstance is justified." King continued. "Allow me to show you the _true_ way to get to your mission destinations."

King led the two out of the market place. As more Pokémon began to roam about the streets, the group went to toward the outskirts of town. Eventually, they stopped in front of a strange building. It had the structure of a Drifblim and it towered high above the three. As Terron looked up at the top, he noticed strange Pokémon drifting out of the building. He couldn't tell what the Pokémon were since they were so high in the air, but they seemed to be balloon-like.

The Fellowship members went inside the building to find that this place was filled with several strange Pokémon. Dozens of the strange, balloon-like Pokémon floated in the air around in the massive room, some talking to one another while others were having meals. A few even flew up toward the roof and disappeared from view. It was then that Terron realized this building didn't have a ceiling, which is how the Pokémon were easily able to depart from here. The morning light shined through the nonexistent roof and into the room.

"Oh, those who wish for our service are here!"

It was then that one of the large balloon Pokémon made its way to the trio. It stopped in front of them and seemed to smile despite not having much of a mouth.

"Children, this is the Drifblim Transportation." King said. "These Pokémon are known as Drifblim, though a few Drifloon also reside here. They offer air travel to the town for a price, but Fellowship members are given free offers. They are what allow us to get to our destinations so quickly."

"Wait, we're going to _fly_ to Jolton Cave?!" Zekra said eagerly. "How do you do that? I mean, we're not too heavy are we?"

"No, you're plenty light." the Drifblim before her assured. "We Drifblim are known for being able to carry heavy weights across the land. However, sometimes we have to have more than one Drifblim to do so or some Drifloon. But no, you are quite alright. You'll be easy to transport."

"Alright, cool!" Zekra said ecstatically. "I've never really been able to enjoy flying before! This'll be fun!"

"We'd like you and your other fellow Drifblim to take us to Jolton Cave." King explained to the Drifblim as he took out the map. "It's right here."

"Hmmm, alright, I'm sure we can manage that." the Drifblim said with a nod. "Alright, come with me. We'll send you off right now. That way, you can get there within a couple of hours or less."

Zekra excitedly followed after the Drifblim as the thought of flying made her ecstatic, but Terron didn't feel the same. He could remember how when he was human, there were airplanes for air travel. He had never been scared of flying in airplanes, but flying with these Drifblim seemed very different. He couldn't help but wonder how they were supposed to carry him. Yes, they were quite a bit bigger than him, but that didn't explain much. More importantly though, he worried they might drop him by accident.

He didn't want to think what would happen if that were to occur.

"Come on, Terron!" Zekra called.

Terron quickly got out of his thoughts before discarding them. He'd have to just see what was going to happen with these Drifblim. There was no point hesitating. He had a mission to do today.

The Cubone went over to join the rest of his teammates by a small sign that resembled a Drifloon head, only lacking the face. The three stood there and waited until the Drifblim they spoke with earlier came back with two other Drifblim minutes later.

"May we see your Fellowship brands?" the original Drifblim asked.

Nodding, Terron and Zekra held out their paws to show the marks engraved in their flesh. King held out his hand as well, though unlike the children's markings, his had a special symbol within the normal marking that Terron remembered seeing only on Len and Éclair. He assumed that this marking was to show that they were the leaders of their particular Fellowship organization.

The Drifblim seemed satisfied with the verification.

"Thank you. Now, we'll send you off." the ghost Pokémon said. "Don't be frightened when we carry you. It's not exactly pleasant for us or you. But otherwise, have fun!"

The two Drifblim behind the one speaking to the Fellowship members made their way up to the children. Terron watched as one of them came to him and looked upon him for a brief moment. It took its two front, streamer-like hands before holding them together so that its interlocked hands and arms managed to resemble a swing. Terron stared at the newly formed seat curiously, starting to see how he was going to be flying.

"Don't worry. You won't fly off." the Drifblim assured. "We fly very gently. The wind won't push you off. Sit in my arms."

Cautiously, Terron did so and sat down on the intertwined hands. Despite the Drifblim being a ghost Pokémon, the arms were quite solid and Terron found he didn't phase through. He glanced over to find Zekra was also resting in the hands of a Drifblim, though laying on her stomach since she found that more comfortable. Much unlike Terron, she seemed quite excited and couldn't wait to get up in the air. The Cubone then looked up at his Drifblim with an anxious expression. He dreaded when he could no longer feel the ground with his feet.

Suddenly, Terron felt air beneath his feet.

He looked down to find that he was slowly being lifted into the air by the Drifblim and was starting to exit the building. Startled, Terron quickly grabbed the sides of the Drifblim's arms with his hands and watched as his altitude increased. Aurora Town grew smaller, though much more slowly than Terron would have thought.

The many buildings were visible and clearly distinct for several minutes as he went higher into the sky. There was no weight holding him down as he was carried.

Despite the slow ascent, Terron still felt uneasy. He still feared that he would slip out of the Drifblim's thin arms and fall to his death.

Being off the ground felt very unnatural.

Terron shifted around uncomfortably in his seat as he tightened his grip around the Drifblim arms.

"Don't worry, little Cubone." the Drifblim spoke gently. "I understand that since you're so used to the ground, you grow uneasy when you leave it. But it's only temporary. You're safe in the sky here. Just look at your friend."

Terron looked over to his side to find Zekra being carried around as well and looking around at everything in sight with wide, bright eyes.

She seemed so happy and excited, the exact opposite of how Terron felt.

"See? She's enjoying herself." the Drifblim said. "So try to relax. I won't let you fall. We won't be traveling very fast either, so you won't feel like you're being pushed off."

Terron took a deep breath as he saw the town start to leave their view.

"I'll try." he said unsurely.

Terron eased up and sat more comfortably as he watched the town slowly fade away into a blurry image of various colors.

Calm slowly came over Terron, releasing him from his worries.

Once the town disappeared, he looked forward and watched the landscape of Shiron pass by him.

To anyone, these views would have been breathtaking.

But to Terron, all he could think about was what the ground was like in those landscapes.

* * *

An hour and a half later, Terron noticed that the Drifblim he was riding with was beginning to descend. Curiously as to why, he gazed downward into the land below. He could see the vague shape of what looked like a large stone or perhaps a small hill. However, as he grew closer to the ground, Terron could see that this land formation had a large, gaping crater in it. He couldn't see what was within the crater due to the intense darkness within, but Terron was quickly able to figure out exactly what he was looking at.

Jolton Cave.

Terron felt a rush of excitement overcome him.

The Drifblim slowly brought Terron toward the Mystery Dungeon until they managed to reach the ground five minutes later. Once the land was easily accessible, Terron immediately jumped out of the Drifblim's hands and started feeling the ground.

It felt so wonderful being able to touch the ground again.

He never thought land could give him such a happy feeling.

Terron was about to roll around in the dirt from such glee, but he then remembered someone was with him.

He turned around to face the ghost Pokémon.

"Thanks for bringing us." he said. "You saved us a lot of time and walking. The view was nice too."

"You're welcome." the Drifblim beamed. "See, flying wasn't so bad."

"I suppose." Terron shrugged. "I didn't feel scared at least…"

"Good, good." the Drifblim said happily. "Now, we'll be waiting for you on the other side of the Mystery Dungeon. That way, we can take you back to Aurora Town just as quickly."

The Drifblim drifted away into the wind and slowly disappeared out of sight. Terron saw Zekra getting dropped off by her own Drifblim before it too floated away. Zekra waved goodbye to the Pokémon before coming over to Terron. A large smile was apparent on her face.

"That was pretty fun!" Zekra said happily. "I can't wait to do that every day! I never knew how peaceful it was to fly!"

"It was okay." Terron said casually. "It wasn't scary, but I still prefer the ground when it comes to travel. But I guess I'll have to manage if we want to save time."

"So, you _were_ scared!" Zekra proclaimed.

"No!" Terron cried. "I just really wanted to be on the ground again! I mean, the flying was fun, but it was like I craved to be on the ground again or something… like I needed it."

"So you're scared of heights?" Zekra asked.

"No! It feels like how you might need candy!" Terron tried to explain. "Like I don't need it, but it bugs me like it _is_ a necessity and… just forget it actually."

He shook his head before he looked out toward the cave. The cave made of gray stone that strangely had small shards of blue crystal embedded into its surface. Though the crystals were small, Terron could see them occasionally letting out sparks as though they were electrically charged. However, he had no idea why that would be so. Nothing seemed to have electricity around the vicinity.

It was then that Terron noticed a third figure descending to where he was. It was King being carried by his arms since he was too tall to be carried in the same fashion as Terron and Zekra. Also, unlike the two children, King was being carried by _two_ Drifblim, each one holding his arms as they drifted.

The duo gently set King to the ground and released their grip on him. They flew away without another word and went to go join the other Drifblim. King watched the ghost Pokémon fly away for a minute before bringing his attention to Terron and Zekra.

"We managed to come here at mid-morning when everyone else will be getting prepared for their day." King stated. "You can see the advantage you have now. You'll be done with your day much sooner than everyone else."

"Are we allowed to do whatever we want after we do a mission?" Zekra asked.

"Most of the time, yes." King replied. "That time is yours to spend on whatever you want. However, you have to gain that time in order to use it."

The Bisharp glanced over in the direction of the cave. He started to walk toward it and Terron and Zekra were quick to follow behind him. The three continued to walk until they stopped right in front of the entrance. Nothing was visible except for an endless amount of darkness that seemed to make up the entire interior of the cave. Seeing this made Terron's heart fill with fear.

How would they know where to go if the entire cave was black?

"We're about to enter the Mystery Dungeon, children." King said gravely. "Are you prepared to face whatever lies within the dark depths of this warped and corrupted cave?"

"Yeah." Zekra said with a nod.

"Me too." Terron chimed in even though he wasn't feeling very brave.

"Good. Always be prepared." King stated.

The three went forward, not turning back, as they disappeared into the bowels of the Mystery Dungeon.

* * *

**Jolton Cave B1**

Terron couldn't see anything around him. Everything was black. He could hear the sounds of his comrades' footsteps walking besides him as well as the echoes, but he still couldn't tell where he was. Terron knew he was somewhere inside of the cave, probably close to the entrance, but knowing that didn't help. He tried to feel for the walls, but his hands couldn't find any.

"How are we supposed to get through here if we can't see?" Terron asked.

"That's your first lesson about cave or even mountain exploration." King's voice said calmly. "You'll need something to light up the darkness or you'll never find your way out. Sometimes, you'll have a fire Pokémon with you and they may serve as your light. However, when you don't, you'll need an artificial source of illumination…"

There were sounds of someone going through the backpack. After moments had passed, the shuffling stopped and something could be heard clanging against the other items in the bag.

A quick flash of light went off, and for just a second, Terron could see everyone around him and the cave that he stood in. The black faded back in once that second had passed and the darkness surrounded Terron once again.

"Worthless Light ball." King's voice muttered. "Always takes these things a moment to function properly."

Once again, a bright light filled the corridor the team was in. This time though, the light didn't die. It stayed without a flicker of weakness, though the lighting was quite dim and barely made visibility better. However, all of the rooms were at the very least seeable and because of that, Terron could see what the interior of the cave looked like. The stones that made up the walls were a cold gray and the floor the same as so. A few blue crystals similar to the ones outside protruded out of the walls, though these ones didn't seem to be generating electricity. The corridor he stood in went down a long ways, and leading to several rooms from how it looked from where he was. It was quite different than the forests and jungles.

Terron looked toward King and Zekra to find exactly what was generating the light. In King's hands was a sphere of golden yellow. It appeared to be made of glass, but it somehow seemed much sturdier. Within the sphere was an eternal stream of electricity, dancing around within its small prison without ever breaking the sphere. Crackling noises filled the air as the bolt hit the interior of the orb.

Terron's eyes grew in fascination.

"What's that?" he asked in awe.

"This is a Light ball." King answered matter-of-factly. "They are items typically used by Pikachu to become stronger. It doesn't work for other creatures strangely enough nor does anyone know why they only work for Pikachu, but they do have one use that many dungeon explorers find quite useful; their light. When you activate a Light ball, it gives off a light that with a wide radius. The light is dim of course as you can see, but it's still sufficient enough. They are incredibly sturdy and won't shatter easily. Their light will never die until you command it to deactivate and it can be used countless times afterwards."

"I'll have to get one of those sometime." Terron said, though mostly to himself.

"Now the issues of light have been resolved and discussed." King stated. "Time to navigate through this dungeon."

King went forward, causing Terron and Zekra to follow after him. They passed by several rooms and, through the lighting, they could see wild Pokémon sleeping within. Zubat hung from the ceiling with their wings wrapped around their bodies, tiny Aron slept in groups, and even a single Onix could be seen. It was a wonder why these Pokémon never woke up, but perhaps it was due to the dim lighting that didn't seem so bothersome.

"Do you know why Mystery Dungeons exist?" King asked the children.

"Ummm, no." Zekra replied. "I know that they're just regular places taken over by some sort of curse or something like that. That's all I know though. Why? Is there a reason why?"

"No one knows." King answered. "However, I speculate that it's due to some anomaly. They've only appeared within the past fifty years… when the Plagued Ones began to appear."

"You think that the Plagued Ones are causing the Mystery Dungeons?" Zekra asked curiously.

"No, I don't think those creatures themselves are purposefully causing the anomaly." King replied. "However, I believe their presence in the region may have something to do with it. They're not ordinary creatures. There's something wrong with them… and we still don't know what they are exactly. We don't even know if they're really Pokémon. They could simply be another kind of creature that take on the forms of Pokémon for whatever reason. Yet, their existence may mesh with environments and warp them into places like this before long. Perhaps… they truly are a disease as we named them after."

Before Zekra could respond, the ground beneath them began to rumble. The three stopped in their places as the rumbling grew more violent and loud.

"It seems a feral doesn't like us being here." King said. "Prepare yourselves."

Zekra crouched down as if ready to pounce while Terron simply held back his weapon and prepared to throw it. He peered into the distance to see if he could spot his enemy. At first, he couldn't see what was attacking him. The shaking ground grew more intense as if to warn that the enemy was nearby, but Terron couldn't see them.

However, it was then that he caught sight of something moving toward him. The ground was literally being upheaved as if something was right below the surface and tunneling toward him rapidly. He readied his club and prepared to strike the enemy as soon as it showed its face.

The rocks suddenly stopped being lifted. The rumbling continued, but Terron couldn't tell where the feral had gone. It had simply vanished.

The ground directly behind Zekra suddenly caved in as a rodent-like creature sprung out of the newly created hole. Its body spun rapidly as it rammed into the Zorua and knocked her to the ground. Terron quickly brought his attention to the attacker only to find it bury back into the floor with ease despite the how thick the ground was. Zekra got to her feet, but she seemed to be listening to the ground as the rumbling continued.

Terron heard the ground give away not even a second later and quickly turned around to counter the attack in case it would attack him. Sure enough, the feral jumped at him from behind with its claws stretched out to slash him. Terron took his weapon and smashed it into the rodent's side. Though he had managed to slam the Pokémon against the wall, the rodent's attack had still connected with his arm and left three deep streaks.

He clutched his arm to stop the bleeding, but didn't let himself get distracted. Even if he couldn't move his arm without being in pain, he couldn't let the feral have another opportunity to make his other arm useless. Terron looked at the feral to find it was already beginning to recover and launch another attack.

Before it could though, Zekra was already charging at it. Her body became enveloped in bright pink until it faded away to show that she had changed form. She was now a mirror image of the enemy, except for the tail. She swiped her new-formed claws at the feral, but it was quick to once again retreat underground. Zekra didn't let that stop her though and immediately dived into the hole the wild one had just created.

Terron was about to go in after her, but King stopped him. The Bisharp shook his head.

"Though you may be a creature of the ground like that Sandshrew, you don't know how to navigate the underground properly yet." King stated. "You'll cause more harm to yourself. Stay on the surface."

"Well Zekra isn't any better!" Terron cried.

"She'll be fine." King stated. "Creatures of the dark are masters of the darkness itself. She'll live. She is a Sandshrew now, so she will adapt."

Upon saying that, a Sandshrew burst out of the ground before smacking into the ground. Terron glanced at its tail to see if it was the feral or Zekra.

Before he could, the pink light overcame the Sandshrew and turned Zekra back into a Zorua. Seeing this answered Terron's question however, and he quickly prepared for the other Sandshrew to come out so he could deliver a blow. He tensely waited for the feral to surface and attack any one of the three.

The ground thundered before the Sandshrew flew out of the floor from behind King, its body curled up and swiftly rolling toward the Bisharp. Terron was about to cry out in warning, but King had already reacted before the Cubone could do so. A sharp blade instantly shot out of King's arm before he brought it up against the Sandshrew. Sparks flew as armored hide and steel clashed and for just a moment, the two forces entered a stalemate.

King added more force to his arm and swung it, causing the spinning feral to go flying backwards into a wall. It became indented within the rocky surface and struggled to become free. However, the stones within the wall held firm.

King rushed toward the feral and in a quick instant, he was right in front of the foe. His bladed arm sliced toward the Sandshrew's soft and exposed underbelly.

"_AAAHHHHHHH!"_

_**SLASH!**_

Blood sprayed everywhere as the Sandshrew's body was cut in two. The split corpse of the feral fell to the ground as the blood gathered around it, making a small pool of red around King's feet. King stared down at the blood slowly growing around his feet and the corpse of his former enemy. His eyes reflected an eerie calm despite how gruesome the scene was.

King retracted his blade back into his arm before making his way back to the children. His entire front was dotted with blood. Terron's eyes were wide with horror and he began to feel incredibly sick. He had seen Zekra perform brutal actions before, but this was somehow much more gruesome. Terron was starting to cringe when the Bisharp stopped and stood in front of him.

He couldn't hold back the overwhelming feeling of nausea and terror.

"You don't have a very strong stomach, do you, Cubone child?" King asked despite being able to read Terron's expression.

"You just cut a Pokémon in half!" Terron cried. " You _slaughtered_ it! I thought we only had to knock out Pokémon!"

"Feral ones don't have to be killed." King stated. "However, sometimes you'll find that you're too powerful for the Pokémon living in the dungeons you'll explore and end up killing them. Then, of course, there's the fact that having blades as weapons can cause deaths rather easily."

"You don't have to be so brutal, though!" Terron shouted in a sickened way. "I can see that Sandshrew's organs thanks to you!"

"It's not that bad, Terron." Zekra then said.

Terron looked behind him to find Zekra making her way over to him and King. She seemed to have a few marks on her from rubbing up against sharp rocks, but otherwise she seemed uninjured. She looked at the mangled corpse of the Sandshrew with a somewhat odd stare, as if she found the sight strange rather than disgusting.

"Are you serious?! What's wrong with you!?" Terron cried at Zekra.

"Hey! Not my fault you can't handle a little gore!" Zekra retorted.

"That's not a little gore! It's making a puddle under its body! _**A puddle!**_" Terron replied in disbelief.

"So? It could be worse!" Zekra insisted. "It could have all of its bones sticking out! Or-"

"_**Both you, silence!"**_ King shouted in a demanding voice.

The two children instantly grew quiet as they looked toward the Bisharp. The intimidating stare he gave Terron and Zekra made them forget that they had been shouting at one another. They were paralyzed in anxiety now.

"I don't have time to be breaking up petty little arguments." King said in agitation. "If you want to do that, do it once we finish the mission. Otherwise, get along or else I'll make you! Understand?"

Slowly, Terron and Zekra nodded their heads in understanding.

"Good." King said with a hiss in his voice. "Now eat this, Cubone child. You will heal faster and your arm will recover in very little time."

King then tossed an Oran berry at Terron. The Cubone caught it with his uninjured arm. He stuffed the whole fruit in his mouth and chewed it. As he swallowed it, Terron could already feel his arm starting to patch itself up.

"Now, let's go. We need to find the stairs to the next floor." King then said.

King went forward down the tunnel, and after a moment of recovery, so did Terron and Zekra. The three of them walked for some time without running into any resistance when they entered a room. The room was rather large and devoid of Pokémon for the most part, but there was something interesting in this room. In the middle of the room was what appeared to be a giant hole in the floor. The group made their way to the strange sight before stopping in front of it.

There was actually a white staircase that descended into the hole, but Terron couldn't tell how far the staircase went down.

"Whenever you explore a Mystery Dungeon, your goal is to get to the next floor or area." King explained. "It's the only way to escape these places. It's different for every kind of environment a Mystery Dungeon corrupts, but for most, it's a staircase. For caves, you'll have to go into the depths of the dungeon while in other environments that may resemble a tower, you'll have to go up a staircase. Every environment is different. Be sure to know how you can get out."

Without another word, King began to descend down the steps and into the darkness. Terron and Zekra followed.


	11. Chapter 10: Necessary Lessons

**Chapter 10**

**Necessary Lessons**

* * *

**Jolton Cave B2**

The three wandered the second floor, keeping their eyes peeled for the stairs and any feral Pokémon who might want to attack the group.

Terron's arm was almost completely healed now. In fact, it looked as though it hadn't been injured at all. The only sign that Terron had been slashed by a feral were the scars that were taking a while to mend. However, this wasn't a concern. His arm was functional now.

As the three walked, Terron could feel the hunger coming to his stomach. It was light hunger, but Terron still felt the need to eat something.

"King, did you pack any food?" he asked as he held his stomach.

"So, you're hungry already," King said as a statement. "Surprised you didn't last longer."

"Well I'm not _starving_," Terron replied. "But, I could use some food. I'm just a little hungry."

"Well then, you should probably wait a bit longer," King said. "You shouldn't eat anything unless you have to. Food is one of the most important items to take with you on missions. Mystery Dungeons allow you the temporary ability to heal faster as well as feel less tired when traveling. Of course, this is at the price of growing hungrier faster because your energy is sapped away more quickly. So, even though you feel hungry, wait until it's absolutely necessary. Your food supply can be very scarce, and if you eat whenever you feel lightly hungry, you'll finish the whole supply very quickly. Learn to tolerate your stomach."

"So what, I start eating just when I start to feel light headed?" Terron asked incredulously.

"Yes, that sounds like a sufficient guideline," King replied matter-of-factly. "Work with that."

Terron frowned, though he didn't say anything. Instead, he tried to keep his mind off the thoughts of food and focused on finding the stairs.

* * *

**Jolton Cave B4**

Terron was now holding the glowing sphere in his hands since King wanted him to practice holding it. The Bisharp had said that since he was the one with actual hands in Team Vendetta, he would be tasked with the job of carrying the light. He would have to learn to be able to hold onto the ball while venturing through dungeons and during battle.

While Terron complained that Zekra could easily take on the form of a Pokémon with hands, King still insisted Terron be the light holder. His excuse was that Zekra wouldn't be able to stay in her changed form for the entire dungeon.

"Besides, you're the leader of Team Vendetta," King added. "The leader should have the light so he can see what's ahead of him and lead his teammates. And also, to warn of any dangers coming your way. The leader will be the first one to see it."

"Suppose you have a point," Terron said carelessly.

"Also, I have another thing I want to talk you about since we're on the topic of leaders and teammates," King said.

"And what would that be?" Terron asked curiously.

"Never go in a Mystery Dungeon alone, no matter how experienced you may be," King said gravely. "If you go in by yourself and you are for whatever reason defeated, whether it be from hunger, fainting for some other reason, or from a feral slaying you, then you will become trapped in the dungeon. You won't be able to escape unless someone finds you and brings you out. The dungeon won't let you escape once you're defeated and alone. However, if you are with someone else and you are defeated, the dungeon will throw you out and take you back to entrance. I'm not sure why having company would prevent you from being trapped, but you will be spared if you have someone with you. Of course, you have to stick together and never separate or else you will become trapped as you might when you're alone."

It was then that Terron began to remember the last time he was in a Mystery Dungeon.

"Zekra and I got kicked out of a dungeon once," Terron said. "I thought we were killed for a while because a Scyther attacked us and decapitated us. So you don't really die after all? You just get kicked out of the dungeon before you die?"

"Oh yes, you die," King said rather calmly. "You two _did_ in fact, die, when that Scyther cut off both your heads."

Zekra and Terron stopped walking.

Terron could feel his heart beating rapidly and his breathing getting shallow. He couldn't talk anymore.

Zekra, on the other hand, had an entirely different reaction.

"I didn't die," Zekra said, her voice becoming incredibly cold. "I don't care what your excuse is about how we got killed and came back. You could say the dungeon saves us before our spirits go to the afterlife and in exchange for that, it takes away most of our stuff and I still won't believe you."

King scowled in annoyance.

"So, you're going to deny the truth?" King asked. "You refuse to accept the reality of the situation? Are you _that_ scared of dying?"

Zekra shot King a dark glare.

"I'm not afraid of dying," Zekra stated firmly. "I just don't believe you is all. No one dies in Mystery Dungeons. You're wrong. Mystery Dungeons may be odd places, but they can't kill you and then bring you back to life. It doesn't _feel_ right."

"Well, if you can come up with a better excuse as to how you lived after your head got cut off, then that's fine," King scoffed. "Believe whatever you want to believe. I refused to believe just like you at one point, but you'll see the truth just as I did. For now, remain in your bliss of denial. See how long that lasts you."

Zekra's claws slowly slid out of her paws and scrapped the ground with them. When Terron saw this, he slowly started backing away from her.

"Zekra…" Terron said reluctantly.

The Zorua brought her claws back into her, but still kept the dark expression in her eyes.

"Well, if you're done reacting to that, we should continue on," King then said. "There's a dungeon we need to get to the very bottom of. Do you feel your shock has left you? Or in the Zorua child's case, denial?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Terron replied, even if he wasn't exactly feeling so.

Zekra didn't reply, though she seemed to nod very subtly.

"Then let's go. We've wasted enough time here."

* * *

**Jolton Cave B5**

"Strike the feral while it's distracted!"

_**THUNK!**_

"It's not doing anything!"

"That's because you struck it while it was still curled up! Do it when it's no longer in that position!"

_**Rumble…**_

"Move! Run to the edges of the room!"

"_BWOOON!"_

Terron and Zekra were facing off with three opponents at the moment; a Donphan with a duo of Phanpy. Earlier, King had spotted them while exploring the floor and made the two children fight against them. He claimed that it was for practice so that they could get used to fighting on their own, but Terron had a feeling it was so that King could watch the two of them get beaten up for amusement. After all, he was already having trouble with holding both his weapon and the precious Light ball while trying to battle… and it was only the beginning of the battle. Somehow though, he kept his grip on both items in his two separate hands.

The enemies were proving tough for the two children due to their ability to roll into tight balls and roam around the room without stopping.

Their attacks on the rapidly rolling Pokémon did nothing.

King was taking the sidelines for the battle and shouting commands, surprisingly not being targeted by the enemy Pokémon. Though Terron and Zekra hated being yelled at, they found King's commands were helpful in not getting themselves hurt.

Terron narrowly avoided a rolling Phanpy as it crashed into the wall where he once stood. The impact caused the cave to shake momentarily and made a few rocks from the ceiling fall upon them. The Phanpy uncurled itself upon smacking into the wall, slightly dazed from the impact.

"Now! Strike it!" King shouted at Terron.

Without hesitation, Terron took his weapon and rammed it into the Phanpy's side. The feral let out a loud shriek from the attack, but it wasn't knocked out, much to Terron's dismay. The feral quickly rose back to its feet as it slammed its body into Terron.

He was blown backwards from the unexpected strength of the Phanpy, crashing into the wall and becoming buried within. He tried to get out, but found that moving around made the sharp rocks around him dig deeper into his skin. He didn't move in fear that his skin would be severely cut up.

"Don't stay in there! You should be able to handle the pain! Cubone have strong defenses and can tolerate most attacks thrown at them!"

A metallic hand grabbed Terron's body before pulling him out of the mess of rocks he was in. He let out a cry of pain as the sharp points of rocks grazed his skin. Once he was freed from his prison, he found King was the one who holding him.

"Get back out there!" King barked.

He tossed Terron forward before the Cubone could respond. The wind rushed past him rapidly as his eyes went dry.

He didn't know where he was going or even if he could control his movement.

_**THUD!**_

Terron smacked into one of the Phanpy before he even knew it. The two went tumbling to the ground, both becoming scratched up as their bodies slid across the stone floor. Terron slowly got to his feet however and looked over the Phanpy he had crashed in. It was the one he had been fighting earlier, and it seemed his impact on it from just now had put it near its collapsing point.

It seemed weak now.

The look in its eyes was sad and confused like when someone is betrayed by a friend.

Terron stared at it, almost feeling bad for how helpless it seemed now.

"What are you waiting for Cubone child?!" King said. "Finish it! Or do you want it to do the same to you? It's either you or it! Never hesitate with feral Pokémon!"

The Phanpy started to recover. Its eyes glared at Terron, now filling with the strange expression of blind rage. It was telling him that in just a moment, it was going to do what he needed to do to it. It was going to defeat him, possibly kill him.

Terron did what he had to do.

With one swift movement, he smacked the back of the Phanpy's head with his weapon.

"_Bwoon!"_

The cry rang from its mouth before the foe collapsed. The body that lay in front of Terron was now defeated and unconscious.

Terron looked over to Zekra to see how her battle was going. She was trying to take care of the other Phanpy that was rolling around while the Donphan was attempting to run her over as well. However, she was rather quick with being able to avoid most of the deadly rolling attacks. Terron watched as Zekra ran around the room with the duo trying to catch her from different sides. She skidded to a stop as she watched the two coming at different angles, rolling around rapidly at equal speeds.

Just when the two were going to run into her, Zekra quickly jumped out of the way. The two forces clashed due to not paying attention to the other's direction and due to the Donphan having more strength than the Phanpy, the Donphan ended up sending the Phanpy flying across the room and into the ceiling.

_**CRASH!**_

The small elephant hung out of the ceiling. Its body was embedded into the rocky surface. It squirmed to break free.

_**Crumble…**_

The rocks holding the feral into the ceiling could no longer support the feral. They gave way from the weight after a couple of seconds and plummeted to the ground, taking the Phanpy with them. The feral didn't know how to land properly and shrieked in terror.

_**BOOM!**_

Rocks sprayed up into the air as the feral crashed into the ground. Terron put his arms over his head to brace himself. A few pebbles struck him, but it was nothing he couldn't tolerate. He watched as the dust cleared to show an unconscious Phanpy.

Most of its limbs were bent in unnatural ways and blood seemed to be coming out of its mouth.

"Whoo-hoo!" Zekra cheered. "It's down!"

"Don't celebrate!" King barked. "You only took down the weaklings! You still need to face the Donphan, which is far more powerful than the Phanpy!"

Sure enough, the Donphan charged at the Zorua. It leapt into the air before curling into a ball. It spun rapidly as it hit the ground, kicking up dust as it sped toward Zekra with its rapid and unstoppable speed. Zekra started running toward a wall in hopes of getting the feral to ram itself into the structure.

Once she had reached the wall, she stood in front of it. She watched tensely as the Donphan rolled toward her, its speed never wavering.

Just when it was a few feet in front of her, Zekra swiftly leaped out of the way and heard the Donphan slam into the side of the cave. She landed on the ground and skidded to a halt. She looked behind her to see if the Donphan had been fazed.

Much to her surprise, there was now a giant hole where the feral had rolled into. The Donphan was nowhere in sight.

"Wha-"

_**CRASH! **_

Without warning, the revolving Donphan exploded out of a hole formed in the wall behind Zekra. Though she had no time to run, Zekra quickly changed her form to that of a Donphan just as she took the full force of the attack. She hoped that it would lessen the damage.

_**CRASH!**_

The attack sent her tumbling across the ground. It would have crushed her with its mass if she had been in her normal form.

She tumbled across the floor uncontrollably as her Donphan form faded.

Seconds later, she slammed into another side of the cave and became a part of it.

"Zekra!" Terron shouted.

"Focus on the Donphan!" King yelled at Terron. "Otherwise you'll end up just like your friend!"

As if Zekra's rages were contagious, Terron started to feel a strong aggravation growing inside him. However, he made no effort to contain it.

"How able I supposed to be able to defeat it then?" Terron demanded. "I can't block it or else it'll run me over! I can't attack it since it does nothing! What am I supposed to do?! You're our guide! Tell me how to defeat it! You haven't done anything in this battle yet to help with that!"

Terron started to pant, feeling out of breath from the yelling that was fueled by his frustrations.

King cast Terron a glare, but the Cubone didn't back down. He knew King had the answers and he needed that information from him.

The Donphan suddenly charged toward the two. It wasn't rolling around as it had been for a majority of the battle. Instead, it seemed as though it were going to ram its head into the two or impale them with its tusks.

Terron felt himself backing up behind King. Fear was very quick to replace his anger.

"You're not hurting this Donphan because its hide is too thick," King said calmly despite the oncoming threat. "You can attempt to pierce its hide all you want with regular attacks, but it'll do nothing. Not even my blades can pierce its armor because its physical defense is too great."

As King said this, a dark purple sphere began to form in one of his hand. It was small at first, but it quickly grew in size as it crackled with black energy. Terron could feel a powerful, overwhelming aura from it that seemed to be flowing with negative energy.

"There's only a couple of ways to defeat creatures with such tough defenses. One of those ways is to use the powers of water, flora, and ice against it. Those powers somehow bypass the strong defenses of the creature and inflict heavy damage."

King took the hand with the dark energy sphere and pointed it at the Donphan. The foe was only a few seconds away from ramming into them.

"The other way is to attack it mentally."

Without warning, power pulsed from the sphere. Black rings imbued with dark purple energy shot out of the sphere in a beam. They smashed into the Donphan's body just as the feral was to ram King and Terron.

"_**BWOOOONN!"**_

The feral shrieked as the attack inflicted its damage. Terron watched in amazement as the rings would slam into the Donphan's body, yet not seem to inflict any sort of physical damage on the feral. No cuts or bruises were formed as the rings impacted the elephant. Instead, the rings seemed to faze _into_ the Donphan's body and cause internal damage.

When the attack ceased, the Donphan collapsed onto the ground and its eyes closed shut. The spot where it had been attacked was streaming with a few wisps of darkness.

The sphere in King's hand faded away.

"I know you don't have many abilities at the moment," King stated. "However, it's best you get some more whenever you can. There are many foes that will be immune to your regular abilities and you will need to overcome that. For starters, harness powers of the different elements. If you want to survive, you'll need to be more versatile in your abilities."

Terron slowly nodded. As he did this, Zekra slowly came back over to the two from wherever she had been previously.

She was covered in scratches and rocks were embedded into her fur. Blood was trickling out of her mouth and paws. Yet, despite having suffered injuries, she seemed able to walk normally and didn't seem to be in pain.

"Hey, I saw that move you used earlier," Zekra said to King. "What was that? It looked like something I wanted to learn."

"A power known as Dark Pulse," King explained. "It's a power meant for creatures of the dark, though there are others who have learned the technique. It's a manifestation of negative emotions and when it strikes your target, they'll suffer from the negativity. It bypasses physical boundaries and enters straight into the soul of the creature to inflict its damage. It's an ability meant to put your enemy through agonizing spiritual pain."

"Oh, I see," Zekra said in interest. "Think you can teach me sometime?"

"Perhaps," King said nonchalantly. "But, we can discuss that another time. I believe our work on this floor is finished. The enemies I made you take down are defeated. We no longer have any business here."

* * *

**Jolton Cave B7**

Terron rolled the Light ball around in his hands, watching as the electricity would move around. He noticed how the electricity seemed to be most concentrated where his hands touched the outside. He found that fascinating and would constantly move the ball around to watch the electricity stay with him.

"You should pay attention to where you're going," King warned. "A feral might ambush you and you'd never know because you were so distracted by that sphere."

"Wild Pokémon don't seem very good at sneaking up on us," Terron replied casually. "I mean, the ground moves whenever Sandshrew attack and those Donphan and Phanpy were really easy to spot. You make it sound like wild Pokémon are masters at taking us out."

"I have seen many feral ones who were incredibly powerful," King said seriously. "They fought like demons and struck from the shadows. There might not be any feral ones like that in this dungeon due to most of the creatures being rock or ground types, but there are some in other dungeons that are deadly. They know how to strategize and they will kill you if you don't keep your guard up at all times. Though, you've seen this first hand. You remember how the Scyther struck you, don't you?"

Unpleasant memories came to Terron's mind. He felt himself shudder.

"It came out of these trees," Terron replied. "And it moved really fast."

"Exactly," King stated. "It used its remarkable speed to quickly tear you down. That might not be the case with the feral ones here, who are known for brute strength rather than speed and strategy, but you will no doubt come across another feral with the same capabilities as the Scyther. That is why you always pay attention to your surroundings. Always listen and watch for the slightest bit of suspicious movement."

"You sure know a lot about wild Pokémon and how to deal with them," Zekra then said. "How long did you have to be in the Fellowship to know so much about this stuff?"

"It wasn't the Fellowship that taught me," King answered. "It was the wild that taught me what I know."

Zekra gave an odd glance to the Bisharp.

"What do you mean by that?" she asked curiously.

King seemed to consider something in his thoughts. It was very unusual for the children to see his normally stern expression become pensive. To them, he always looked like he didn't need to think about something.

"… I suppose I could explain how I received my knowledge to you two," King then said. "Perhaps you'll learn something from it."

Terron and Zekra looked up at him, quite interested in what King had to say. They had already created theories as to what he meant, and eagerly wanted to know if such theories were true.

"As I'm sure you don't know, my kind have a very different way of living than other creatures," King began. "We travel in packs, which always have exactly one Bisharp leader and numerous Pawniard underlings. Whenever we find other packs, we usually duel them and the winner will take the fallen one's belongings. There is no exception except during the mating seasons, when all the packs would gather together to breed. Then, each pack would take their share of eggs and leave them somewhere where no one else would find them. We'd then leave our most powerful Pawniard behind with the eggs so that it can raise the hatchlings and evolve into their leader. Then the cycle would continue."

"Okay… you guys have an odd system," Terron commented. "But what does that have to do with you knowing a lot about wild Pokémon?"

"It's being explained so that you don't question why I didn't have parents and why I was traveling in a pack," King answered curtly. "Moving on, though, I was a Pawniard underling forty-five years ago. I lived in a pack of seven Pawniard and obviously, one Bisharp once he evolved. I took orders from him for a while, satisfied with my status. We would always get decent meals under his leadership, and to me, that was what mattered the most. But then, one day after I had started understanding the world and seen other packs, I started to grow dislike toward my leader. He never seemed to be serious with anything. He was always so giddy and carefree, and never did much to assist us during our killings. It was very different from how the other leaders were with their own packs, and I grew to despise that. The others were somewhat displeased with his attitude, but it was only I who loathed being around our leader.

"So one day, I decided that I would become the leader of the pack. You see, there is a rule amongst the packs saying that if a Pawniard can defeat their leader, they can become the new leader and get rid of the old one. I had every intention of doing such. I thought I could be a better leader and wanted to dispose of our false one. So on a spring morning, I confronted my leader and told him I wanted to duel. He thought I was joking, but I managed to convince him that I was very serious about dueling him. And so… we fought. Leader versus underling."

King paused, as if his memories were preventing him from speaking.

"And what happened?" Zekra then asked.

"… I underestimated my leader," King answered, his tone darkening. "While he was rather ridiculous in personality, I learned it was a façade to hide the fact that he was very powerful. He used techniques I had never seen before at the time, such as burying underground and unleashing a sphere of intense energy at me. Though I attempted to strike him, my blades never reached him. I was defeated within a minute. He and the others then abandoned me since the custom also stated that if the Pawniard loses, they are exiled from not just the current pack, but all packs. From that point on… I would have none of my kind.

"I was expected to die since it had been taught that solitude meant defenselessness. I attempted to join society in order to survive, but found that I couldn't adjust to its rules. And not only that, but others were terrified of me. They knew my kind were killers, and were scared that I would massacre everyone. I ended up leaving society due to that, and went to the only place I knew would accept me; the wild."

"But, you were alone," Zekra said. "Weren't you afraid that you were going to get killed off by wild Pokémon?"

"I was aware of that at the time, but I didn't care," King said. "I only wanted to keep living, no matter the cost. I had nowhere else to go. I roamed around the region for a couple of years, staying in whatever environment seemed best at the time and killing the inhabitants. I never went into the Mystery Dungeons, however. I knew I wouldn't last in those corrupted environments. I had been warned countless times to stay away from them and I had no intentions of disobeying that particular warning.

"Though I often considered this time of living in the wild to be one of my low points in life, this was the time where I learned about feral creatures. While I had grown in the wild on a technicality, I started to understand the feral creatures I stalked were quite different. I was self-aware and could speak while these creatures simply acted on instinct and lacked any sort of spoken language. I can only assume it was because my kind had a little 'society' of their own, and thus taught us to behave somewhat like a normal society. But anyway, I observed these feral creatures now that I was free to act on my own accord and learned of what their actions meant so that I could kill them by myself.

"I had spent all my years prior fighting by the orders of someone else. And when I did try to fight by myself, I had lost. Now, with no one, I had to teach myself how to do everything alone. And though it took time, I was able to figure out how to deal with these creatures without the aid of anyone. I learned how to sneak around them when I didn't wish to fight. I learned how to flee from an enemy who was too powerful for me to defeat, something my kind was taught never to do. I learned the best times and areas to strike and deliver the killing blow for each kind of creature. I learned how these creatures attacked and the patterns behind that attack. I discovered many things during those years…

"However, this came at a cost. I lost my ability to use speech and my self-awareness started to fade because I was so accustomed to the feral ways. It was shortly after I learned the ways of a feral that I became one of them. I didn't even realize this had happened to me at the time. I somehow got the idea that I was _always_ a feral when I became one."

Terron could easily see why King was the way he was now that this information was explained. However, that still didn't explain one thing…

"So, then how did you join Team Valor if you were in the wild?" Terron then asked. "And how'd you learn how to talk again?"

"Len and Éclair found me," King answered. "They were traveling through the Iron Jungle, which was my current home at the time. The two were heading through the area to go find the Fellowship so they could join. I happened to see them and decided to make a meal out of those two. I attacked them and the three of us fought. However, before any of us were seriously injured, another wild Pokémon decided to attack us; a Serperior. It was starving from what I could tell and wanted to eat us, despite me being covered in blades. So, we fought against that creature to save ourselves.

"Once we had done so, Len and Éclair grew weary that I was going to kill them now that nothing was getting in my way. However, seeing and fighting along those two started to make me remember that I used to be like them. And from that moment, I began to crave being self-aware again. I wanted to be able to work with others again and no longer feel I was in constant danger like before I became a feral. So I went with them, and we joined the Pledge Mountain Fellowship back when it was the only Fellowship. And from that day forward, I used my knowledge to help those two whenever we went into the wild while they helped me become self-aware again. _That _is how I gained my knowledge. The only thing the Fellowship taught me in regards to the wild was how Mystery Dungeons work. Even still, the creatures within were almost the same as the ones in the normal wild, except far more aggressive."

King glanced at the children. They were both staring at him with odd expressions, as if they didn't know how to react to King's life story.

King scowled.

"I don't always tell that story," King said sternly. "Only five of our members know that story. I only told you so you'll learn a few lessons from it. Necessary lessons that is."

"I thought the purpose of the story was to explain why you know so much about wild Pokémon," Zekra replied.

"It was. And it was also a way for you find the mistakes of my past and prevent yourself from repeating them," King said with a hint of annoyance. "Everything I tell you two is a learning experience."

"And what would these lessons be?" Zekra asked.

"Well, you'll have to find those yourself," King answered. "I can't tell you everything. Though, I can tell you never to tell this story to anyone else. If I find out you did, both of you are going to wake up in the morning with your ears chopped off."

"I think the only lesson in your story was to live in the wild in order to get stronger," Zekra said blandly. "That's a horrible lesson since you just said doing so makes you a wild Pokémon."

"That's only your misguided interpretation of the story," King said with a scoff. "Perhaps one day you'll gain a new interpretation and see the true lessons."

_**BZZZT!**_

A weak bolt of lightning suddenly struck Terron from somewhere ahead of him. The Cubone cringed as the electricity struck him and anxiously anticipated the pain to immediately follow.

However, much to his surprise, the electricity didn't bring any pain.

The electric current had gone into his body, and though he could feel it moving through his limbs, the sensation wasn't painful. It felt as though water was flowing down his skin and going toward the ground. He could feel the electricity sink into the floor and drain out of his body harmlessly.

He peered into the distance to see where the electricity had come from. There was a single Elekid standing a distance away, electricity generating through its two head prongs.

The group stopped to address the new threat.

"What just happened?" Terron asked as he checked his body. "I didn't feel anything. It was like nothing happened!"

"You're a creature of the ground," King said with a hint of annoyance in his voice. "Your kind are immune to the power of electricity. How do you not know that? That's almost as pathetic as a water creature forgetting it can breathe underwater."

"Oh… I uhh… I just forgot since I've never had this happen to me before," Terron answered awkwardly before quickly changing the subject. "But, what's an electric type doing here?"

"This cave has electricity generated through the many crystals throughout the place," King explained. "I haven't figured out how electricity is kept or made in the crystals, but it attracts electric creatures and they make homes here with the other creatures."

The Bisharp looked down at Terron and Zekra.

"I'm not going to help you this time," King said to the two. "Last time I was instructing you. This time, you're on your own and I won't be giving you advice. I'll only provide assistance if you're on the verge of defeat. However, answer this question first; how do you plan to defeat that Elekid?"

"Well, it's an electric Pokémon," Terron said, coming up with a plan as he glanced over at the enemy, "and… I'm a ground Pokémon… so it can't hurt me. It doesn't look like it's got a lot of physical defense, so I guess I'll try to hit it with my club."

"And I'll just bite it or something," Zekra chimed in.

"See how that goes then," King replied, his voice not showing whether their ideas were good or not.

Terron and Zekra then ran at the Elekid, enticing the feral to begin its own assault on the two. A bolt of electricity shot out of the wild Pokémon's body and made its way to Zekra. It seemed the feral understood that it couldn't harm Terron with its attacks, so it was aiming for the one who _would_ take damage.

Zekra swiftly ducked as the bolt flew over her head. She had managed to avoid most of the attack, but small amounts of static that came from the attack managed to make her fur puff up.

Terron threw his weapon and watched in the dim lighting as it prepared to strike the Elekid. However, the Elekid swiftly ran forward with increased speed and avoided the weapon. Before Terron could grab the bone as it came flying back to him, the Elekid rammed him with its body while it still had the increased velocity. While the attack didn't seem to inflict too much pain, he was thrown back from the momentum. He tumbled backwards and did everything he could not to let go of the sphere in his hands.

By the time Terron managed to get to his feet, the Elekid was charging Terron once again. He didn't have a weapon to counteract the feral since it was lying on the floor in the distance. Instead, he did all that he could and tried to get out of the way.

Unfortunately, he wasn't very fast and the Elekid managed to charge him again. Terron was tossed along the ground.

The Elekid stood over him, smirking at the sight of seeing Terron unable to dodge its attacks.

Just then, Zekra came from behind the Elekid and latched onto one of its arms with her teeth. The Elekid screamed in pain as blood started to leak out of the spots where Zekra's fangs punctured its skin. It thrashed its arm around, trying to get Zekra off of it.

Terron smiled at seeing his companion coming just in time to help him. He felt glad to know that someone was assisting him with the battle.

However, that joy instantly faded when he saw the electricity building between the prongs of the Elekid.

It was a telltale sign of what was going to happen very soon.

"Zekra!" Terron shouted. "Let go of the Elekid!"

He saw Zekra look over at him for just a second, her eyes starting to widen in understanding. By then however, it was too late.

Terron watched in horror as electricity was released from the Elekid's arm and made its way into Zekra's body. It reminded Terron of how she looked when Len had paralyzed her, but unlike that time, this one was meant for harm. She screamed as she let go of the Elekid and fell to the ground, the voltage still coursing through her system. Zekra tried to move, but found that her muscles were locked by paralysis.

The Elekid began to gather static into one of its fists.

Terron noticed that his weapon was very close to him. He had been thrown toward it during that last attack.

A sufficient amount of electricity coated the arm of the Elekid.

Terron grabbed his club off the ground.

The feral threw its fist at the paralyzed Zorua.

Terron felt himself dash forward, but he didn't know what for.

The next thing he knew, Terron was standing in front of Zekra and taking the brunt of the attack meant for the Zorua.

He could feel the impact of the punch to his face, but most of the power had come from the electricity surrounding the fist. With that power being absorbed harmlessly into Terron's body, the attack wasn't as damaging. It hurt, of course, but Terron didn't let himself become overwhelmed by the punch.

Terron struck his weapon into the Elekid's head.

The Elekid immediately fell to the ground upon receiving the attack, its eyes closed in unconsciousness.

Terron let out a sigh of relief upon seeing the defeated Pokémon. He could feel his face still hurting from the attack, but he did his best to ignore it. He looked back at Zekra, who was still paralyzed.

Terron attempted to pick up Zekra and brought her awkwardly over to King. For him, it was like carrying a large dog that was his height. Thankfully though, she wasn't very heavy.

"King, do we have anything for paralysis?" Terron asked the Bisharp. "Zekra isn't moving or anything."

"Thankfully for you, I do," King replied as he took something out of the backpack. "That's another thing you should pack for missions; items that cure paralysis, poison, burns, and so on. There are berries for that, which is what I brought."

Terron then set Zekra on the ground as King held out a red fruit on a vine. He put the fruit in her mouth and watched as she started to move again.

"That was a Cheri berry," King told the two of them. "It's meant for curing paralysis. Luckily for us, they're quite common and they're not hard to get ahold of. So if you ever go in a dungeon, always bring a few of those along with Pecha berries. Bring Rawst berries if you know there will be any fire creatures around."

"Alright, got it," Terron said with a nod.

He then brought his attention over to Zekra.

"You alright?" the Cubone asked, remembering the electric attack from earlier.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Zekra assured as she managed to smile. "It just wasn't really all that great to be paralyzed and stuff. I can still feel that electricity going through me…"

She shook the thought out of her head before glancing over at King.

"How did we do though?" Zekra then asked as she got to her feet. "Did we battle that Elekid the right way?"

"Though you made a few errors, you did fine," King replied. "Though, I recommend you don't sink your fangs into creatures of electricity, poison, and fire from now on. As for you Cubone child, I saw that you shielded your friend with your body. While it wasn't risky this time due to being immune to electricity, I recommend you don't do that on a daily basis. If you're going to act as a shield for your allies, you'll need to learn how to create barriers of protection that aren't your body. You need to create barriers of energy."

"And how do I do that?" Terron asked.

"I'm sure you'll find someone who can teach you that," King simply said. "Just don't use yourself as a safeguard unless you absolutely have to. That's all I have to say."

* * *

**Jolton Cave B10**

"Alright! We're on the last floor!" Zekra cheered.

She then took a bite out of the apple she was eating to satisfy her hunger. Terron, who was also eating an apple, smiled upon hearing this. He could finally leave this dungeon as soon as they found the stairs.

"Stay alert, Zorua child," King reminded the Zorua. "Some of the most dangerous foes of a dungeon are on the bottom floor. Knowing this is a cave, there will probably be many large rock creatures and fully evolved forms of creatures we saw from previous floors."

Terron frowned. He could feel his good mood starting to disappear already just from that reminder. This may have been the last floor to navigate through and while that may have seemed good, Terron also knew it meant it could lead to a potential let down. If he was defeated on this very floor, then he'd have to deal with the shame of nearly completing a mission, but failing at the very last second.

He didn't want to deal with such a soul-crushing emotion.

The group eventually saw the entrance of a room that held the desired staircase they wanted. Terron could see it in plain sight, even if he was quite a distance from it. This was the last staircase. After this, the hardest part of their mission would be over.

He was about to head toward the stairs in eagerness, but King grabbed his arm. The Bisharp pulled the Cubone back with a swift motion, causing Terron to go flying off his feet uncontrollably for a second before he landed back on the ground besides King. Terron tried to yank his arm free, but King's grip held firm.

"Stay put," King instructed. "Don't enter the room."

"Why not? The stairs are right there!" Terron reasoned.

"Take a closer look at lies within the room," King stated.

King released his grip on Terron's arm. He got back to his feet and peered into the room for a few seconds.

There wasn't anything there worthy of note. He looked back up at the Bisharp.

"Nothing's there," Terron reported with a grumble.

King suddenly grabbed the Cubone's head and made him look again into the room. Terron struggled against the cold metal that felt as though it were crushing him.

"Look at the walls," King said. "What do you see on the walls? What's waiting for us on those walls?"

Terron stopped struggling and brought his eyes over to the wall he was being directed to. At first, he still couldn't see anything special. However, after staring at the wall for a moment, he was able to see that there was something there. Strange, egg-shaped Pokémon were stuck to the walls thanks to their green spikes that stuck out all over their body. Despite not moving, the Pokémon seemed quite awake. There had to be at least four of them, possible more on different walls.

"Ferroseed…" Terron said quietly.

"So you see them now," King said matter-of-factly. "They attach themselves to walls to get minerals from stones. As soon as they spot any enemy, they will fire their spikes at you. This normally isn't a problem if there's just one, but because there are multiple, it could prove dangerous. That is why you always check the room you are about to enter; hostile Pokémon may be waiting for you and once they see you, they won't hold back. They will annihilate you with their advantage of surprise."

Terron felt his head get jerked upward toward the ceiling.

"What do you see up there?" King then asked.

Terron squinted his eyes and noticed that there were many spider-like Pokémon hanging from above on webs streaming with electricity. They didn't seem to notice him, but the mere sight of them was unsettling.

"More Pokémon," Terron answered uneasily.

"Yes, Joltik and Galvantula," King replied. "They're simply waiting for someone to come along so they can pounce on you."

"But how did you see them so well?" Zekra asked. "They blend in pretty well with this dim lighting."

"Years and years of practice," King answered as he released his grip on Terron. "But, we need to focus. We have to get rid of these Ferroseed or at the very least, avoid their attacks and get to the staircase. The Joltik and Galvantula are of concern as well. They can ensnare you in their electric webbing and you will never be able to escape. How do you suppose we take care of both these pests?"

"Ummmmmmm, long range attacks?" Zekra suggested.

"Yes, that's one possibility," King replied with a nod. "However, I don't think you two know many ranged attacks, do you?"

"I can throw my bone," Terron said.

"Yes, but you sacrifice your weapon if you use it in this sort of situation," King remarked. "But I see. Both of your kind are known for having direct attacks. Which leads us to the next option of what to do…"

King took off his backpack and set it on the ground. Terron watched King dig through the bag until he pulled out an orb that was roughly the same size as the Light ball. However, this one was completely blue and didn't have any sort of energy flowing visibly.

King held out the new orb to the children.

"This is a Wonder orb," King explained. "There are a wide variety of these orbs, all having a different effect when you use them. Some can teleport enemies to another location on this floor, others can increase your speed or evasiveness. All are useful and while they are typically used in Mystery Dungeons, they can also be used elsewhere. This particular one is known as the Petrify orb, which paralyzes every enemy in the room you're standing in once you activate it. It's very useful for ambushes."

"And how do you activate it?" Zekra asked.

"You simply tell it to activate," King answered. "Now, listen closely. Once this orb takes effect, you will only have so much time before the effect wears off. You must run to the stairs as fast as possible. Do not hesitate no matter what. Otherwise… the Ferroseed, Galvantula, and Joltik will recover and they will finish you off in a second."

Upon hearing this, Terron began to recall his incident of what happened when the Scyther from Overgrowth Jungle defeated him. He knew what had really happened during that incident and how he really couldn't stay dead, but the thought of it was still unnerving. The feeling of almost dying only to be resurrected at the last second…

He didn't want to repeat that.

Terron gave a quick nod of understanding.

"Now, when I activate this orb, head toward the stairs," King instructed. "You shouldn't run into any resistance, but if you do, eliminate them as fast as possible or avoid them."

King then took the blue orb in his hands and took a step into the room. As soon as he became visible, the Ferroseed fired a swarm of spikes from their bodies at him. The spikes quickly made their way toward the Bisharp.

He wasn't going to be able to activate the orb without getting impaled. To make things worse, the electric spiders were dropping from the ceiling and crawling toward King rapidly. Terron tensely waited to see what would happen however.

He knew that King would think of something to get out of this danger.

The spikes and spiders began to close in on the Bisharp. They were a mere few feet away from him.

At the speed they were going, they would strike in a matter of seconds.

Terron found himself looking away.

_**CLINK! CLINK! CLINK! CLINK! CLINK! CLINK!**_

Confused by the strange sounds, Terron looked back at King to see what was happening. Much to his surprise, King was not being pierced by the multiple thorns. A slightly transparent and green barrier was encasing him and taking the brunt of the attack. Whenever the spikes hit against the strange shield, they would bounce off before falling to the ground harmlessly. The electric spiders tried to attack King as well, but their attacks couldn't pierce the barrier.

"Petrify orb, activate," King said calmly.

The blue orb within his hand immediately shattered into pieces as a strange kind of electricity escaped from within the orb. It darted out of King's hands and flew out of his barrier before hitting the ground. The single stream of static split into multiple strands as it made its way to all the enemies. All at once, each strand of static shot itself into the bodies of all the Ferroseed, Joltik, and Galvantula.

_**CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!**_

Every Ferroseed suddenly dropped to the ground and ceased launching their spikes. Streams of electricity could be seen coming out of their bodies. The electric spiders seemed frozen in place as well.

Terron and Zekra stared in amazement.

"Have you forgotten the plan already?!" King shouted at the two. "Run! Get to the exit! You have thirty seconds before they regain mobility! Hesitate and you _will_ die!"

That was all that needed to be said to get the two going.

They panted heavily as they ran past King and kept their eyes focused on their destination.

The two could see the stairs within their sights. It was only a few feet away.

_**TWACK!**_

Something spinning rapidly rammed itself into Terron. Spikes cut into his skin as he was blown away from the stairs and tumbled on the ground.

Terron looked in front of him to find the spinning Ferroseed coming back at him again for another round. The paralysis must have faded on this one.

Just as the Ferroseed was to close in on Terron, he raised up his weapon to intercept the attack.

_**THUNK!**_

Though he managed to avoid being hit, Terron was blown backwards once more from the sheer force of the attack. He hadn't been able to resist the momentum.

Terron saw Zekra quickly rush over to him. She was trying to get him to his feet.

"Come on!" Zekra cried urgently. "The others are starting to recover! We have to hurry before they all attack us!"

"I'm trying," Terron muttered. "Just… gah… those spikes hurt…"

He checked his body to find that he had many wounds from being impaled by the Ferroseed's attack. Countless holes were apparent on his body and many were starting to bleed.

"Well you'll get injured even more unless we hurry!" Zekra stated.

She gently bit down on Terron's hand and pulled him up to his feet. She then went behind Terron and started shoving him forward with her head to get him moving. Once Terron started running again, Zekra ran by his side, making sure not to outrun him.

Just then, two more Ferroseed struck. They rapidly fired their thorns at the two from different angles. The children quickly picked up speed in an attempt to outmaneuver the oncoming spikes. The two were able to get away from most of the attack, but a few spare thorns managed to strike both Zekra and Terron. They each let out a cry of pain, but two children wouldn't stop running.

"We're almost there, Terron!" Zekra said. "Just a little bit further!"

Terron glanced around the room. He started seeing the other Ferroseed beginning to move. The Petrify orb's effects had faded. Every Pokémon that was once paralyzed was now starting to head toward the two in a mad frenzy. This time though, it wasn't just Ferroseed.

There were other Pokémon in the room now. They had come during all of the excitement.

Joltik, Galvantula, Golbat, Zubat, Sandshrew, Sandslash, Graveler…

Many kinds of feral ones were dashing toward the two injured Pokémon.

They were swarming around them.

Yet despite the hopelessness of the situation, the two kept running. Terron knew that Zekra could see what he saw, but he knew without a doubt that she wouldn't give up.

He had no intentions of giving up either.

The two kept going.

The wild ones started to close in on the children and prepared to strike.

_**SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEECCCCCHHHH!**_

A horrible, high-pitched scratching sound filled the air. Every Pokémon in the room dropped down to the ground and covered their ears. Many screamed along with the noise to make a choir of suffering.

Zekra and Terron instantly fell to the ground from an intense ear-ache plaguing the two.

Zekra squirmed around violently and let out shrieks of tortured pain. Her movements were spastic and uncontrolled.

Terron too felt this same pain that started bouncing off the walls of his ear canal. With each passing second, the sound would only grow worse and his mind began to throb with anguish.

He attempted to cover his ears to block out the noise, but it did little to help.

Cries of agony escaped his maw.

"_**THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU DON'T RUN FAST ENOUGH!"**_

Terron looked up to find King standing over the two. Both of his blades were drawn out of his arms. His expression was fixed in exasperation.

"KING!" Terron shouted since the screaming around him was making it hard to understand his own words. "WHAT'S GOING ON?!"

Rather than answer, King grabbed Terron with one hand and Zekra with the other. Somehow, he managed to carry the two children in his hands without losing his grip or suffocating them. He immediately made his way through all of the chaos and to the stairs that were surrounded by a mob of screaming Pokémon with the two in tow.

_**SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!**_

With swift and fluid movements, King sliced into each and every Pokémon that was in his way with his blades. During the process, he somehow didn't injure the children.

Bodies were torn to pieces as those pieces flew across the room in a messy fashion. Golbat wings were severed off, Joltik bodies were stepped on and smashed, Sandslash were sliced to pieces, and blood fell down upon the cave floor like drops of rain.

Eventually, King had made it through the large swarm of Pokémon, their brutally-murdered corpses collapsed behind him in heaps.

He was right next to the stairs.

There was one Pokémon guarding the stairs however.

It was a Graveler. It stood there fiercely despite the knowledge that all of its comrades were slain.

It would still fight. It would still prevent these travelers from finishing the dungeon.

King gave the feral an agitated glare.

He held up his blades that were coated with the fresh blood of wild Pokémon.

The blades gave off a malicious glint.

_**SLASH! SLASH!**_

All four of the feral's limbs were sliced off its body in a mere second.

_**SLASH!**_

A blade struck it in the face, cutting through the Pokémon as if it were made of butter rather than rock.

It split into two pieces.

Each severed body segment fell over to the ground as King dashed through the empty space where the Graveler once was.

With the exit finally open, King plunged down the final stairway of Jolton Cave with his recruits in tow.


	12. Chapter 11: Vital Information

**Chapter 11**

**Vital Information**

* * *

**Jolton's End**

King set Zekra and Terron on the cold cave floor once he came to the bottom of the stairway.

Their bodies were soaked in the blood of King's slaughtered foes.

Once she was released, Zekra started to shake off all the blood that clung to her fur, apparently not affected by what had just happened.

Terron, on the other hand, was too petrified to move at all. He had never seen so many deaths before in such gruesome fashions. He could feel his body shaking. He could feel the pain coursing through him and the blood running out of his wounds. However, he found himself not concerned with the pain at the moment.

His mind was ravaged and was trying to compose itself. Many thoughts that would have normally been structured flew through him aimlessly, his mind unable to keep them in order due to its current state.

So many images and thoughts were flooding through him. All of them were meaningless, useless thoughts. None of these thoughts had any purpose, yet Terron watched and listened to every single one of them.

Visions of Pokémon violently being killed…

Sections of the Fellowship base…

Countless strategies to be used for battle…

Zekra…

Zekra watching her hometown burn and reduce to ash…

Zekra watching her friends die at the hands of creatures that were not Pokémon…

_This must have been what Zekra felt like when she saw her entire town slaughtered before her eyes._

That was the one organized thought that went through Terron's head. It was the only thought that seemed to have a purpose and a meaning to him.

It was then that Terron realized something about that thought. The Pokémon that died in front of him were wild Pokémon. None of those creatures desired anything in life except for flesh of enemies slain by their own hands.

What Zekra went through was different. Everyone who was killed in front of her was someone she grew up with. Zekra had personal relationships with many of those who died that day. They were all sentient beings who had dreams, hopes, and families…

Yet, despite having witnessed the massacre of all Pokémon she knew in her village, Zekra had taken it rather well when Terron met her right after the incident. So surely, he too could be strong like her.

Terron, inspired by this thought, managed to get his mind to focus back on reality. The thoughts still ran rampant, but Terron found he could still concentrate on the real world. Even through the pain, he managed to focus.

His eyes wandered to the Light ball still grasped in his hands. Somehow, he managed to keep a hold on it through all of that. Once he was able to verify that he still had the sphere, Terron looked around to see where they were now.

This was the very bottom of Jolton Cave. Much unlike the rest of the cave, this floor seemed to resemble an actual cave. There weren't any corridors or multiple rooms as Mystery Dungeons normally had. This place he stood in was simply one large room with stalagmites protruding from the ground and stalactites hanging from the ceiling. At the very far end of the room was a giant blue crystal crackling with electricity. Though it was quite a ways away, Terron could tell it was probably taller than King.

An exit could be seen in the side of a wall far away. It was a giant hole with light flooding out of it. It was adding much more light to the room than the Light Ball had been capable of.

Terron glanced at his surroundings again, finding how odd everything looked compared to the other floors of the Mystery Dungeon.

"Why does everything look normal?" Terron asked, his voice still reluctant from the internal confusion. "We're still in the Mystery Dungeon, aren't we?"

"The Mystery Dungeon ended once we went down that final staircase a moment ago," King explained. "We're out of the Mystery Dungeon. This is simply the bottom of the original Jolton Cave, which is uncorrupted by the dungeon's curse. These exist for dungeons that take place in some kind of enclosed area like a tower or cave. Not so much for places like forests, however."

"Then this is pretty much the old cave before a Mystery Dungeon took over," Terron noted. "I guess that would explain why there aren't any corridors or anything."

"Wait, why do Mystery Dungeons have that weird corridor and room layout?" Zekra then asked. "I keep seeing it in every dungeon we go in. And why does it look different for every dungeon and floor we go on? I mean, if they're being taken over by the same 'curse', then why a different layout for everything?"

"I'm not quite sure why such a design exists," King shrugged. "That must be the dungeon's choice design. As for why every dungeon looks different in layout, that's not known either. All we know is that the curse constantly changes the dungeon's layout every time someone new enters. We don't understand anything else about the structure other than that. They're called _Mystery_ Dungeons for a reason after all."

"So if I go to a dungeon I've already been in, it'll be just as tricky to navigate as the first time?!" Zekra cried. "The paths will all be different? Lame!"

"Afraid so," King replied. "Deal with it."

Zekra sighed in defeat and continued to get the blood off her body. However, it had been absorbed into her fur and wouldn't come off as easily. She stared at the blood-stained fur for a moment and then seemed to remember something.

"Hey, what was that loud screeching sound from earlier?" Zekra asked King. "You know, the thing that made everyone start screaming and stuff. And why weren't you affected by it?"

"Oh, you must mean this," King said.

The Bisharp held up his drawn blades and gently made the sharp edges touch. Terron and Zekra stared curiously, not sure what to expect.

The blades slowly scrapped against one another. Tiny sparks flew out of the steel.

_**SCREECH!**_

The first time the children heard this horrible sound, they had been rather far away from King, so they hadn't received the worst. However, that was no longer true. They were right in front of King now while he unleashed this ear-shattering attack.

They were being hit with the full blast.

Terron and Zekra collapsed onto the ground and immediately, blood started to pour from their ears. King swiftly ceased rubbing the metal together and had the blades disappear back into his arms. The children looked up at him, both of them cringing.

"Does that answer your question?" King asked.

"WHAT?" Zekra asked loudly.

"Hmmm seems that worked _too_ well," King said thoughtfully. "Looks like your eardrums have been ruptured."

"WHAT?!" Zekra then asked again. "I CAN'T HEAR YOU!"

In annoyance, King took out two Oran Berries from the backpack and crammed them into Terron and Zekra's mouths. Terron nearly choked on the fruit that was suddenly shoved into his maw, but he managed to chew it down.

As the two of them began to recover their hearing and wounds from the previous battle, the sounds of someone running filled the air. Terron looked behind him to find a Raichu and Eevee rushing toward them. Static was sparking through the Raichu's fur to offer limited light to the newcomers. He watched as the two new Pokémon stopped in front of the group, both rubbing their ears in agitation.

"Why'd you have to do that?" the male Raichu cried. "It hurts, you know! I told Pokémon I'd be waiting here for them, but I didn't send a challenge letter! I'm not interested in fighting anyone!"

"I was showing these children something," King stated calmly. "I apologize for the pain I brought upon your ears."

"It's fine," the Raichu said as he looked down at Terron and Zekra. "But, are you Special Tasks Fellowship members by any chance? I never see children at the Fellowship, but you have that sort of look that I see the members have."

"Yes," King answered. "They're new recruits and I'm assisting them. Children, show him your marks."

The two held out their paws and allowed the Raichu to see their Fellowship brands. Satisfied with their proof, the Raichu smiled. He seemed happy about having their presence with him and didn't, in the slightest, seem affected by the blood sprayed all over the group's bodies.

"Tell us your name, fellow Raichu," King said. "It's a custom for our organization to know the names of our… customers."

"My name is Voltzile," the Raichu introduced before gesturing to the Eevee besides him. "And this is my friend, Luna. You know, the one I mentioned in my posting."

"Nice to meet you three." Luna said with a small bow of her head in a quiet feminine voice.

"But before we talk to you about the incident," Voltzile quickly said, "I'd like to see the Thunderstone I asked for. You know, to make sure that I'm not being used."

Terron scoffed at the comment. Voltzile wanted to make sure he would get his reward so it didn't feel like he was being cheated. However, he was actually cheating the Fellowship by not giving up the information willingly. He was wasting the Fellowship's resources.

"Funny how you would say that when you're-"

"You can only see it," King interrupted. "You can keep it when you tell us all you know. If you try to steal it before then though, well… we're going to have some problems. Do we have an understanding?"

King cast Terron a warning glare. It was only for a second, but Terron understood what King was telling him. He needed to keep quiet and not ruin the mood of the clients. Otherwise, they might not get the information they sought.

While Terron didn't agree with the duo's intentions, he knew King was right with not insulting the Raichu or Eevee.

"Alright, that's fine," Voltzile said with a shrug. "I can work with that."

King dug through the travel bag until he pulled out a white cloth that was wrapped around an unknown object. He slowly opened up the cloth to reveal a small, green stone resting within. Etched into the stone's center was an inscription of a lightning bolt.

Voltzile and Luna stared at it from where they stood. Both of their eyes were wide and shining with so much wonder, one could think that they had just seen Ho-oh flying past them in the skies.

"It's so beautiful…" Voltzile said in fascination. "It's just like how I remember my Thunderstone was way back then…"

Terron glanced at the stone, and then looked back at the Raichu in confusion. To him, the stone didn't seem all that special. It didn't even shine like the Light Ball or have electricity flow through it. It was simply just a green rock with a fancy inscription in it.

_Must be a Pokémon thing._ Terron reasoned.

"Now that you've seen your Thunderstone," King said as he put the cloth back over the stone, "tell us what you know about the Plagued Ones. Tell us all that you know."

"Luna and I were at Abanor City a few days ago when we saw those things," Voltzile stated as he tried to recall the incident. "We were… well, escaping from the law. We escaped prison a while ago and we were trying to get the police off our tails. So, we were going to Abanor City since that's a pretty small town with not so many Pokémon and we didn't think we'd get caught there. However… when we got there… it was a bit different than we thought."

The Raichu went silent, his expression grim from thinking about the memory.

"The town was completely vacant," Luna then said, seeing that the Raichu wasn't going to finish his explanation. "Nobody was there. The town wasn't destroyed, though. Everything was the way it should be, but everyone was gone. We searched all over the place for someone, but no one showed up. It was honestly kind of scary with nobody around in this city. It was a bit like a ghost town. Right when we left the city grounds though, a door opened up from one of the houses nearby where we were. I thought it was another Pokémon, so I was about to greet them, but… it wasn't a Pokémon. It looked like an Absol, but there was something wrong with it. It was almost like a ghost. My instincts told me I needed to get out of there, but I wanted to know what that thing was. So, Voltzile and I hid behind some trees and watched it. It stood there for a while, flinching as if something was attacking it. I didn't see anything attacking it though, so I'm not sure why it would have done that. But eventually, that Absol thing stopped flinching and took off. Somehow, it managed to fly even though it didn't have wings. And then Voltzile and I ran as fast as we could in case more of those things showed up."

"Did you see where it went?" King asked.

"It fled east, I believe," the Eevee replied. "Don't really know why though since there aren't really any nearby cities in that direction."

"You're sure there weren't any others of its kind with it?" King then asked.

"No, there weren't anymore," Voltzile then answered, getting over the memory. "At least, none that I saw. I'm pretty sure there was just one."

"I see," King said. "Do you know what it might have been doing at that location where no one else was?"

"Well, I'm not sure." Voltzile said as he scratched his ears. "I don't know much about Plagued Ones. I didn't even know that's what that Absol was until I heard a rumor about what the Fellowship's real purpose is. I mean, that thing _was_ a Plagued One, wasn't it?"

"From how you describe it, yes," King stated. "However, many of our reports always showed that those creatures traveled in swarms. Yours is the first to show that they can travel alone. Are you sure all this single creature did was cringe for no apparent reason?"

"Yeah, that's all it did," Voltzile insisted. "It could have been raiding the house though. But, that's only a guess. That's everything I know and Luna knows. Right?"

"Afraid so," the Eevee said with a frown. "We probably should have investigated the house that the Absol came out of, but we really didn't want to stay in that town any longer."

"And you're being completely honest with us, correct?" King asked. "You're not lying to us just to get this valuable Thunderstone? Because if you are of course, you know what the Special Tasks Fellowship will do to you…"

Both of the criminals' eyes grew and a grimace appeared on their faces.

"We're not lying!" Voltzile and Luna cried at once.

The two glanced at one another before Luna let Voltzile say what he wanted to say first.

"If you don't believe us, you can go check Abanor City yourself!" the Raichu stated. "No one's there! Everyone's gone!"

"Besides, why would we lie to you?" Luna asked. "Only an idiot would attempt to lie to the Fellowships. We know how talented your group is at detecting lies… and don't even get me started on what you _do_ to those who you realize are lying. No one wants to be taken to the Dusk Mines Fellowship..."

King stared at the two, his expression unreadable. They glared back, their eyes unwavering in their supposed truth. Terron couldn't tell whether King was being skeptical or not. He could only wait and see what the Bisharp would decide.

_What _does _the Fellowship do to Pokémon who lie to them?_ Terron wondered. _And… why is it the Dusk Mines Fellowship rather than ours? What's so special about that one? Where is that one anyway…_

"Alright, I choose to believe you two," King said, interrupting the Cubone's thought. "Your information will be helpful. Take your Thunderstone and get out of here."

King tossed the wrapped evolution stone at the two. Voltzile caught it, unwrapped the cloth, and allowed the two of them to stare in wonder at the stone once more.

"Yes!" Voltzile said with glee. "Now you can be a Jolteon and no one will be able to track you! Still have a problem with me… but we'll figure that out later!"

"I recommend you use that stone soon, or else it'll get stolen," King advised nonchalantly. "And remember, you don't tell anyone that the Fellowship got that for you, nor do you tell anyone about the Plagued Ones. Got it?"

"Yeah, we understand," Voltzile confirmed. "Thanks for the Thunderstone, though. And don't worry; we're not going to break the law anymore… maybe. Hope your group manages to stop the Plagued Ones! Good luck!"

"See you!" Luna said with a friendly wave of her paw.

With that, the two friends ran out of the cave, both happy as could be. Terron watched the two leave until they were no longer in sight. Once they were gone, he looked up at the Bisharp.

"How do you know if Pokémon are lying to you when you do stuff like this?" Terron asked curiously. "You have that happen to you guys, don't you?"

"Years of practice, Cubone child," King answered simply. "Many of our members have the ability to know when someone lies due to training. There are always ways to tell when someone is not telling the truth. As for if we have ever been lied to, yes, some of our clients try to lie to us. They tried to get rewards from us using false information. However, we realized it right away and gave them the proper punishment."

"Those two were mentioning something about the Dusk Mine Fellowship though…" Terron then said. "They were saying that we send criminals to that Fellowship. What did they mean by that?"

King was quiet for a moment.

"Whenever we find out we've been lied to, we send those who lied over to the Dusk Mines Fellowship," the Bisharp said after a while. "The Fellowship of the north. Unlike most of the other Fellowships, that one is distant from society. The sole leader felt that his Fellowship shouldn't dwell within a city since it runs the risk of having the public figure out our true purpose more easily. He felt that keeping our secret was more important than having support from the city. And that works to our advantage."

"And why would that be?" Terron asked curiously.

"There is a specific rule for what we do to liars, and that is that we execute them," King replied. "But, we don't execute anyone at our Fellowship since we simply don't have anywhere to dispose of the bodies that would be out of sight. We don't have a deep and powerful river to dump the corpses in like the Nestati Fellowship, a convenient graveyard nearby like the Oracion Fellowship, nor the ability to drop the bodies off the high mountain tops like the Pledge Mountain Fellowship. Our Fellowship is surrounded by inhabited land. So, we bring the criminals to Dusk Mines instead and have them execute our criminals. No one visits them directly, so they have a much easier time disposing of their liars and ours. They don't mind slaughtering our liars, though. In fact, I feel at times they _enjoy_ being able to have more creatures to slaughter… they seem much too happy whenever we bring them a new batch of criminals…"

"Oh," Terron said. "I see."

Terron felt a shiver go up his spine at the thought of the other Fellowship. He could just see Dusk Mines now with its ominous atmosphere and its bloodthirsty members crawling within the base.

He could see their one leader, sitting upon a throne of corpses with paws covered in blood... smiling maliciously.

Terron desperately wanted to get off the subject.

He didn't want to know more about the Fellowship's punishments.

He didn't want to know further information about the Dusk Mines' base.

He imagined more information would make things worse… if that was even possible.

He'd think about this later, but not in this cave with a Fellowship leader.

The Cubone, for a brief second, started to feel terrified of the Fellowship despite knowing they were a helpful and virtuous organization.

"So are we done?" Terron then asked hastily. "We have anything else to do?"

"No, the mission is finished," King replied. "Now we just have to get back to the base, record your mission at registration, and get your payment for completing this mission. Then the rest of the day is yours to do as you please."

"Alright, cool," Terron said.

King made his way to the exit. Terron started to follow behind him. He was rather glad this mission was over. He had learned quite today, but he nonetheless couldn't wait for the mission to end. He wanted to relax after having to travel through a hostile cave with King and his creepy information.

The disturbing images started coming into Terron's head again.

_No, you're thinking about it again. _Terron thought to himself. _Stop thinking about it. Their intentions are good. They just have a very odd way of dealing punishments. Stop feeling terrified of them. _

Just then, Terron noticed Zekra wasn't following behind me. He stopped worrying about his thoughts and looked back at the Zorua to see what was wrong. For some reason, she was standing still and her eyes gave the impression that she was in a trance.

Terron approached her and waved his paw in front of her face. Her attention didn't return to reality.

"Zekra?" he asked. "How come you're standing there? Something bothering you?"

The faraway expression disappeared from the Zorua's eyes as she looked up at Terron. Her eyes were filled with calm, but there was a lingering emotion of fear. She did her best to hide that fear, but Terron could still see it.

Upon seeing it, he started to get a vague idea of what was bothering her.

"Is it about… those things Voltzile and Luna were talking about?" Terron asked, not wanting to say the Plagued Ones' names in front of Zekra.

"Sort of," Zekra said hesitantly. "It's just that… those two criminals… they… they remind me of…"

Zekra wasn't able to say what was on her mind. She stopped in the middle of her talking and nervously looked around.

"Never mind," Zekra said hurriedly. "Forget what I said. Let's just get going."

The Zorua went forward without Terron to exit the cave. Terron stood there for a few moments, the conversation replaying over and over in his head.

Once his brain felt he had heard it enough times and stopped playing it, Terron finally went to go leave the cave as well.

* * *

**Aurora Town**

With the mission over, the three had their Drifblim take them back to their town. The ride home was a peaceful and uneventful, allowing the team to relax and simply enjoy the sights. Once they had arrived at their destination, Terron felt refreshed from all of the battling and dungeon crawling.

Zekra too, was happier than she had been before. The air travel must have given her time to relax and clear her thoughts.

King however, seemed the same as ever.

Terron wondered if King ever looked happy.

The three stood outside of the Drifblim Transportation building, standing on the sidelines of the road. Occasionally a Pokémon would pass by them and stare at Terron due to his lack of helmet, but otherwise, the three were left in peace.

"Congratulations," King said blandly. "You two finished a mission. Without dying. That's an accomplishment from how your last mission went."

"Ummm, thanks?" Zekra said unsurely. "So all we have to do now is just report our mission and then we're done for the day?"

"You'll also have to report the information you received from the Raichu and Eevee," King added on. "Once you do that though, you'll be finished. You can do that by yourself, can't you?"

"Yeah, of course!" Zekra assured. "That's not hard at all!"

"Good," King said with a nod. "Now that the mission is finished, my time assisting you two is over. I no longer have anything to help you with. From this moment onward, you two are on your own."

"But you're still going to teach me that cool move you used, right?" Zekra asked. "You know, the one you used in the dungeon with the darkness."

"Dark Pulse," King verified. "I'll teach you that power another time. Come ask me about it when you can manage to take on 'B' Rank missions. Then I'll know that you can handle its power."

Zekra nodded in understanding. King then reached into his backpack and pulled out the mission paper and a certain spherical item; the Light ball in its deactivated form.

King handed the two items to Terron. The Cubone looked at the sphere oddly for a few seconds, and then looked up at King in confusion. He opened his mouth to say something, but King answered before words could come.

"You can keep that Light Ball," King explained. "I've got a million just like it. Besides, you need that more than I do in your financially broke state."

King hefted the bag onto his shoulders and began walking away from the two.

"See you children around," the Bisharp said without looking at them.

Terron and Zekra slowly waved goodbye to the disappearing Team Valor member, though they doubted he saw their waves. Once he was gone, the two looked at one another.

"Well, guess that's that," Terron said. "You want to go to the base now or do you wanna do something else first?"

"Probably should go to registration first," Zekra replied. "You know, to get it out of the way."

"Sounds like a good idea," Terron said. "I just hope we can remember everything about what Voltzile and Luna told us…"

* * *

The two had gone to the registration office of the Fellowship base and much to their dismay, found they had a hard time remembering all of the details about Voltzile's story. Apparently, they had to remember practically _everything_ about the story. Terron and Zekra had only remembered the most important parts of the story, so they had spent about half an hour desperately attempting to remember the important, seemingly trivial details. Of course, Emdox ended up probing Terron's mind anyway to get the entire story, but it was still nonetheless an annoying and stressful time.

However, their efforts were paid off when they were given their reward paid by the Fellowship itself: a small sack with 500 Poké. Gaining their first 'real' reward was enough for the two to completely forget about how irritated they had been.

And not only that, but it had no fund deductions since it was not an outside fund source.

The two were now sitting at a table in the cafeteria, staring in wonder at the small, golden coins they had spread out on the table. They had their meals with them, but the two were paying no mind to the food. The money was all they could truly focus on.

"So does having 500 Poké make us rich?" Terron asked Zekra eagerly, not quite understanding the currency of the Pokémon world.

"Well, no, not really," Zekra answered. "I mean, we could buy quite a few berries with this kind of money… and maybe there's some scarves that are pretty cheap. But if we get this much money every day, then we can be rich! I bet the harder missions pay even _more_ Poké too!"

"Pretty sure you're right," Terron said with a nod. "We'll have to go to the store and see what we can buy with this later. At least we've got this Light Ball for free."

Terron glanced over at the sphere resting on the table besides his meal. Now that it was deactivated, the sphere no longer had a lightning bolt moving within. Instead, it looked like an empty, dull globe.

Terron half wanted to activate the item to see the fascinating appearance it gave.

"Wonder where the electricity comes from anyway?" the Cubone then wondered.

"Maybe you have to give it electricity or something." Zekra suggested.

"But King didn't have any electricity," Terron reasoned. "Or, maybe he made a spark with his blades or something. Hm, wish he would have told us how to use this thing. Hopefully we'll figure out how to use it."

"Yeah, can't be that hard," Zekra said. "But, we'll avoid dungeons in caves and mountains until then. Just in case."

Terron packed up the coins and the Light Ball into the sack before he and Zekra started to enjoy their meals. He, as usual, didn't look at the Zorua's food in fear that he'd start feeling sick.

When the two had finished, they turned in their plates to the chefs so that they might be washed and reused. They thanked them for the meal and headed outside to go visit the store for some shopping. It was still afternoon for the two, giving them plenty of time to do whatever they wanted the rest of the day.

As the two left the base, chatting about what items they might find, Éclair happened to walk past them so that she could get to the base. When the Ninetales noticed their presence, she stopped and made her way back to the children.

"Dear children, I wish to speak to you," Éclair called.

Terron and Zekra stopped walking. They watched as Éclair caught up to where they were and looked upon them.

"Hi, Éclair," Zekra said with a friendly smile. "What is it?"

"I was informed that you two completed your mission not long ago." the Ninetales said. "I wished to know how it went."

"Oh, it went fine," Zekra replied. "Nothing really special. Just talked to some clients and got some information. We already gave it to Emdox, though, and now, we're just going to go to the Kecleon Market."

"Ah, I see," Éclair said. "And how was King? He didn't torment you, did he? I have countless memories of King being too brutal with others."

Éclair seemed to smile a bit, as if finding the memories to be amusing.

"Um, no, he was fine," Zekra said awkwardly. "But, how'd you know he helped us with the mission?"

"King told me so yesterday," the Ninetales answered. "It was his excuse for not completing an errand for me. Nonetheless, I am glad he was able to assist you two. Despite his rather harsh ways, he is very knowledgeable and makes a fine mentor. I, myself, still learn new things from him all the time."

"Well okay then," Zekra then said.

"I hope that we'll be able to do alright on our future missions though," Terron said. "We learned quite a few things about how to survive in dungeons and how to prepare for the day, but I'm hoping that will be enough to let us succeed from now on. King's not going to help us anymore with that. We're kind of on our own now."

Terron frowned in melancholy at the thought of that. Despite having only been tutored for a few hours, Terron could feel the pangs of wanting a teacher again.

While he had been fine before Team Vendetta had King, it was only because he didn't get to experience how valuable a mentor was and felt Zekra was all he needed.

But, now that he had the opportunity to have an expert companion on the team, Terron felt he couldn't go back.

Having a professional tag-along meant having a stronger feeling of safety, and he didn't want that to go away.

Even if the tag-along belonged to a group that killed liars.

_Ugh, stop thinking about that! _Terron thought in exasperation. _Let it go!_

"Yeah, I'm kind of worried myself," Zekra added. "I mean… I know a lot of things, but having a guide is nice. It's going to be a little odd going back to the way things were…"

"I assure you that you should be fine on your upcoming tasks without any guides," Éclair said with a small smile. "However, since I know that your doubt still lingers, I will give you advice so that you may become more competent and be able to do things on your own."

Terron and Zekra looked at Éclair, eyes filled with hope and curiosity. It got Terron's mind off his tormented thoughts.

"If you wish to become successful in your later missions, you need to start training," Éclair explained. "Simply going on missions will not allow you to prosper. You must gain strength outside of the Fellowship. Performing only Fellowship tasks will allow you adequate competence and independence, but one day, there will be a time when you need more than adequateness. How and where you choose to train is decided by you, but that is my advice. Seek to gain strength on your own time and your power and self-reliance will improve more than it ever could by doing only missions."

"Seek training…" Zekra repeated slowly.

"Exactly," Éclair replied. "That is how Len, King, and I became competent when we belonged to the original Fellowship. We would go to the Wildfire Plains after every mission. We would battle the wild Pokémon and each other, and also taught one another all we knew. And though it took time, we eventually became the way we are now."

Terron and Zekra nodded thoughtfully.

"Those are my words of wisdom to you," Éclair then said. "You may choose to heed it or not."

The Ninetales looked behind her, towards the giant tree base.

"I must be going now," she said. "I have a meal to attend to. Take care, children."

The Ninetales left the two behind her as she walked away. Terron and Zekra watched her go, thinking about the words she had just told them.


	13. Chapter 12: Understanding through Strife

**Chapter 12**

**Understanding through Strife**

* * *

"Yes, you want two Oran berries, one Cheri berry, one Rawst berry, and one Pecha berry, correct?" the green Kecleon asked, a pleasant smile on its face.

"Yep! For our next mission!" Zekra said.

"Okay, that'll be 150 Poké," the Kecleon replied.

Terron opened the sack of money he carried and dumped the coins into his paw. With Zekra's help, he took the proper amount of coins from the pile and set it on the counter before him. The Kecleon happily took the money and placed a pile of various berries in its place. Terron put the rest of his money back into his sack and then gathered the berries into his arms.

With the purchase now in hand, Terron and Zekra turned around and started to leave the store.

The two were shopping at the Kecleon Market, using their free time to buy supplies for their next mission. The store had a vague similarity to a candy store with multiple edible items being in barrels, orbs sitting on shelves that were tacked into the walls, and scarves hanging from hooks. The entire store was run by two Kecleon. The two were brothers, one being the normal green kind while the other was an odd shade of purple. With their constant smiling and well-mannered personalities, the very store had a very welcoming atmosphere that might make anyone feel pleasant.

As Terron and Zekra left the store, the purple Kecleon, who was organizing berries into separate barrels, saw them and waved cheerfully.

"Goodbye, you two!" the purple one called. "Come back soon! We might be selling some new weather-changing wonder orbs soon!"

"Alright, we will!" Zekra replied cheerfully. "See you again!"

With their dungeon-crawling items purchased, the two left the store. The children passed up the rest of the merchants in the area, searching for any particular items they might want. Sadly, there weren't many items that the two wanted or could even afford. Even Terron's most sought out item, the Cubone helmet, was nowhere in sight.

However, the children didn't feel too bothered by that.

The cheeriness of the Kecleon shop had rubbed off on them for the time being.

No longer needing to shop, Terron and Zekra went to the Sandslash tunnel to drop off their leftover money there. After that was taken care of, the two headed back to the base and set their new items in their room. They figured they'd use them for their next mission rather than store them away.

With their errands done, the two now wandered through the streets, trying to figure out what to do with the rest of their day.

"So, Éclair was mentioning something about needing to train," Terron stated. "She wasn't too specific about how to do that, but when did you want to start this 'training'?"

"Well, she was mentioning something about fighting wild Pokémon, so maybe we can do that," Zekra suggested. "And, we could do it right now. I mean, we don't _have_ to get a mission now like King said. We could do that later tonight."

"I suppose," Terron replied. "It's not like the Fellowship will run out of missions. So, back to training, we could go to the Gray Lands. That's not too far away. And, I remember there were some wild Pokémon roaming the place."

"We could always go to some Mystery Dungeon as well," Zekra then said. "If we go to a regular wild place, the Pokémon will just run away from us and make battling difficult. If we go to a dungeon though, the Pokémon will naturally attack us and then we'll be forced to massacre them. Then for sure we'll get stronger!"

Terron glanced uneasily at Zekra.

"Um, I don't think so," Terron replied. "That means that they're more likely to seriously hurt us since they're actively trying to attack us. At least with the normal wild Pokémon, we can surprise them since they're not _trying_ to hurt us most of the time.

"I suppose you have a point with the Pokémon." Zekra said thoughtfully. "Alright, we'll go to the Gray Lands that lack the color gray. To the plains!"

* * *

**Gray Lands**

The children sat in the middle of the large field, the gentle breeze swaying the plants within the field.

Quiet filled the air, giving the two a sense of calm during their small rest.

The two had spent the past few hours finding their way to the Gray Lands. At first, they thought they had to venture through Wayward Woods again to get here. However, after a bit of exploring, the two realized there was an alternative path to the Gray Lands and went through there.

It took more time to go around the woods, but Terron and Zekra felt it was better than having to travel through another Mystery Dungeon without any supplies.

As the two sat quietly among the soft grass and watched birds fly by, Terron felt his mind wandering.

At first, he thought about their day and the many things they learned from the leaders of the Fellowship. He felt happy to know that the adults had taken time to teach him and Zekra. He couldn't have imagined how long it might have been before they learned those valuable lessons by themselves.

They truly were nice Pokémon.

"_There is a specific rule for what we do to liars, and that is that we execute them."_

Terron froze up.

He recognized that voice.

"_We don't have a deep and powerful river to dump the corpses in like the Nestati Fellowship, a convenient graveyard nearby like the Oracion Fellowship, nor the ability to drop the bodies off the high mountain tops like the Pledge Mountain Fellowship." _

The disturbing images started flooding Terron's thoughts.

"_So, we bring the criminals to Dusk Mines instead and have them execute our criminals. No one visits them directly, so they have a much easier time disposing of their liars and ours. They don't mind slaughtering our liars, though. In fact, I feel at times they _enjoy_ being able to have more creatures to slaughter… they seem much too happy whenever we bring them a new batch of criminals…"_

The smiles of countless killers etched themselves into his brain.

The ones that stood out the most, however, were the leaders of all the Fellowships.

Terron started smacking himself with his own club, attempting to get rid of the faces in his head.

They weren't going away.

"Hey, what are you doing?!" Zekra cried.

Zekra quickly snatched the bone out of Terron's hand with her teeth. Terron tried to get it back, but Zekra was quick to get out of the way.

She leaped backwards, landing a foot away from the Cubone.

"What's going on?" Zekra asked with the bone still in her mouth. "Why were you hitting yourself?"

Terron sprang at the Zorua, trying to get his weapon back. Zekra had seen this coming, however, and took off running in the opposite direction.

Terron started chasing her, feeling rather vulnerable out in the wild without his weapon. Though Terron wasn't as fast as Zekra, he refused to relent until he got the bone back.

"Give it back, Zekra!" Terron shouted. "I'm not going to hurt myself anymore! Just let me have it back!"

"That's what everyone says just to get what they want back after it's been taken away!" Zekra shouted back.

Terron continued to chase Zekra, both of them running around aimlessly in the Gray Lands. Thankfully, no wild Pokémon decided to attack them; they had run away once they saw Terron and Zekra running rampant.

After trying to get the Zorua for several minutes, Terron noticed Zekra was starting to slow down. She must have been getting tired.

Terron, too, felt slightly exhausted, but he pushed himself to catch up with Zekra. He slowly started to get near her as her speed faltered.

Zekra, realizing Terron was nearby, frantically started looking up toward the skies.

Just then, a Swellow flew over their heads. Upon seeing this, Zekra leaped into the air as the pink light covered her.

Terron tried to pounce on her, but he missed and landed on the ground. He spit the dirt out of his mouth and looked back up out of the grass.

Terron watched as Zekra turned into a Swellow and took off into the skies, high above where Terron couldn't reach her. Though she seemed out of breath, she continued to ascend until she was barely visible.

The Cubone collapsed back onto the ground, feeling out of breath from running so much. There was no point in running anymore. Zekra was a bird now and was going to be that way for a while. The best he could do was stay here until she became a Zorua again.

Terron rolled onto his back as he attempted to gain his composure again. While he wasn't happy about chasing around Zekra, he at least felt a little better than compared to a few minutes ago. Possibly because he was too exhausted to let the disturbing images get into his head.

_Why'd I have to be friends with a Zorua? _Terron thought. _They can change so easily to make things work to their advantage…_

Not long after thinking this, Terron saw a figure descending from the sky. Knowing what to expect, he sat up in the grass and watched as Zekra came falling down in her Zorua form, the bone still in her jaws.

_**THUMP!**_

Zekra landed on the ground, not too far from where Terron sat, tumbling along the grass as her momentum slowed. By the time she had stopped rolling around, Zekra was a couple feet away from her landing site and panting.

Thankfully, she didn't seem to have any injuries.

Terron slowly got to his feet and made his way toward her. Zekra, despite being exhausted, started getting to her feet as if to take off. But before she could do that, Terron managed to grab his weapon that was sticking out of her mouth and attempted to pull it out.

Zekra clamped her teeth down on the bone and resisted.

The two then entered a small tug-of-war, neither wanting to give up their hold on the item.

It was Terron, though, that managed to win after a minute.

Once he got his weapon back, Terron plopped down on the ground a few feet away from the Zorua, needing a break. He held onto the bone tightly, not wanting Zekra to steal it from him again.

There was quiet for another minute as the two slowly regained their energy.

After that minute passed, Zekra finally spoke.

"Why were you hitting yourself, Terron?" Zekra asked, sounding more concerned than earlier.

Terron glanced at the ground. He considered telling Zekra a lie, but then, he realized that he and Zekra were alone. There were no Fellowship members in the area to hear them. They were all back in Aurora Town or still out on missions.

Besides, he and Zekra were friends. If he wanted to stay friends with her, Terron knew he had to be honest and admit to what was going on. They needed to share secrets with each other, just like they had the first day they met.

"I was trying to get these thoughts out of my head," Terron said with a sigh. "They were bothering me a lot."

"What kind of thoughts?" Zekra asked curiously.

Terron looked over at the Zorua, a hesitant look in his eyes.

"Well, I've been thinking about the Fellowship lately," Terron began. "Though specifically, it was the information King told us about. You know, with how they punish liars. That information really disturbed me. I mean… _killing _Pokémon just because they lied to us? Th-That's just really creepy. I'm starting to feel terrified of being in this Fellowship, knowing that we do that."

"Oh, I see," Zekra replied. "But, you don't need to worry. We both know that the Fellowship has good intentions. They just do that since they have rather strict rules and don't want to be messed with. But taking that away, they're still nice Pokémon. The leaders even helped us feel better when we were sad, and when we needed some pointers as to how to get better at missions."

"Yeah, I know that," Terron said. "But it still bothers me. The Fellowship does really weird things. I mean, first they mark us like they're branding us, and then they tell us that they kill Pokémon who lie to them. It's… It's just bothering me."

"I don't know what this 'branding' is," Zekra started to say, "but, what do you want to do then about the Fellowship if it's bothering you so much?"

"I don't really know," Terron said quietly. "I mean, we can't just leave the Fellowship; we have nowhere to go. Plus, I do like the place despite their creepy tendencies. I just feel… horrified by the information. And I really want to forget that I know what the Fellowship does."

Zekra started to think about something.

"Does knowing that we kill liars disturb you?" Terron asked before Zekra could talk.

"Well… only a little," Zekra answered hesitantly.

There was silence for ten seconds.

"You're not?" Terron asked, sounding more surprised than uneasy. "Why?"

"I'm a dark-type, which means those kinds of Pokémon are bit more… well, _dark _in ways of thinking and doing things compared to other types," Zekra explained. "I'm used to disturbing things because I'm one of those dark types. I don't mind killing wild Pokémon in such gruesome ways because of that, for example. So, yes, this idea of killing clients is rather creepy… but it's not enough to bother me. Dark types were made to be able to handle gruesome things without much thought. It's our mindset."

"Oh, I see." Terron said.

"Yeah, but I can understand why you're bothered," Zekra then said. "But, it's not too bad, like I said. The Fellowship has more positive sides to them than negative after all. So, just try to get used to those creepy traits, I suppose."

"But how?" Terron asked. "I can't imagine ever getting used to that. It's like I have blood on my hands that won't wash away…"

"Well, you seem to be getting used to me and my disturbing ways." Zekra said with a smile. "So, maybe if you can do that, you can also do that with the Fellowship. Sometimes, you just have to accept things for the way they are."

"Maybe," Terron replied. "Maybe. I'll try. Looks like I have a lot of things to adjust to now that I'm a Pokémon. First the body and powers, the time thing, and now this… being a Pokémon sure takes a lot of work."

"You'll get used to it," Zekra said with a chuckle.

Terron, now feeling slightly better about the situation, got up and walked up to her.

"So when do you want to find some wild Pokémon to fight?" Terron asked. "That's why we're here after all."

"Oh, right, we were doing that," Zekra replied. "Well, I'm kinda tired from having to transform while I was getting exhausted, so let's just take another break for a while. The sun should be up for a few more hours."

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea," Terron remarked. "I could use a bit of a break myself."

Terron sat down and the two, once again, relaxed in the early summer weather. Terron rested his head against Zekra's side to get comfortable and watched clouds go by with his friend. They named the various images they could identify, whether they were simple outlines of Pokémon or things that Terron remembered from the human world. If he ever found the latter, he would explain them to Zekra, who didn't always understand the concepts even after they were explained.

Eventually though, after a while of making up shapes in cloud formations, the two fell asleep from tiredness.

* * *

An hour later, Terron and Zekra started to smell the scent of smoke in the air. It woke them both up from their naps.

A couple yards away, there was a large cloud of black haze. It was slowly spreading throughout the plains, making its way over to the two.

Curious as to know what was going on, Terron and Zekra got to their feet and hastily made their way over to the smoke. Their nap had provided them recovery from their running and transforming, which made getting to the sight quickly very easy.

Once the two were a foot away from the outermost part of the black cloud, they peered inside to see if they could spot anything.

Unfortunately, the smoke was much too thick for them to make out anything.

The two looked at one another.

"This looks a lot like a smokescreen," Zekra said. "It's too thick for it to be a normal fire. There's probably a Pokémon causing this inside there."

"I wonder why a Pokémon would be making this, though," Terron said in response. "I can't think of a practical reason to make a whole bunch of smoke."

"Hmmm, maybe there's another wild Pokémon in there and the original Pokémon is fighting it," Zekra suggested. "Could be that the smoke is being used to blind the enemy."

An eager smile grew on Zekra's muzzle.

"Which means… this would be the perfect opportunity to fight and gain experience!" Zekra proclaimed. "Visibility is clearly limited, so we could do a surprise attack _and_ we'll be striking an already weakened enemy! And visibility won't be a problem for me!"

"Would we be able to breathe in there, though?" Terron then asked. "That smoke looks pretty thick."

"Well, only one way to find out!" Zekra said enthusiastically.

Without another word, Zekra darted into the haze. Terron immediately lost sight of the Zorua.

The Cubone was considering whether he should risk going into the cloud of darkness, when suddenly, a bright and orange light glowed within the cloud.

"Arrogant Pokémon of darkness!" a deep and powerful voice exclaimed. "How dare you attempt to attack me!?"

_**FWOOSH!**_

Zekra immediately came running out of the smokescreen, sections of her fur singed. Her eyes were wide with panic.

"Retreat! Retreat!" the Zorua cried.

"Zekra, what's going-"

_**FWOOSH!**_

A large stream of flame spewed out of the cloud, nearly missing Terron. Even still, he could feel the intense heat coming off that burst and it nearly scorched his arm.

Out of pure reaction, Terron started running as well.

"Get back here!" the voice yelled. "You must receive your penalty for your actions!"

Terron turned his head to see what was behind him. He was expecting an enormous fire-type Pokémon that would suit the unknown voice. He figured it was an Arcanine or Emboar since they were rather large Pokémon that could produce such deep voices.

Much to Terron's surprise, the Pokémon that emerged from the black haze was a Quilava. While normally Terron wouldn't have found this Pokémon to be very intimidating, this one had an intense glare of rage etched into its eyes.

Terron had only seen that much rage in Zekra whenever she was offended.

Seeing it on a different Pokémon that seemed set out to murder them was somewhat terrifying.

"You cannot escape!" the Quilava shouted, confirming it was the voice from earlier.

The Quilava immediately picked up speed, rushing toward Zekra. Once it had managed to close much of the distance, the Quilava fired a swarm of star-shaped energies from its mouth. Zekra attempted to swerve out of the way, but the Quilava was quick to cease its attack and lunged at Zekra's change in direction.

Its body caught fire, causing the Quilava to gain a quick burst of speed.

Zekra didn't move out of the way in time.

Terron watched in horror as the Quilava rammed its head into Zekra's side, knocking her into the ground. Her side immediately caught fire. Zekra attempted to roll around in the grass to put the fire out, and though she managed, it also made the plants surrounding her catch fire.

Terron started running toward Zekra, wanting to assist her. However, the Quilava noticed his presence and acknowledged it by releasing a pillar of fire at him. Terron attempted to move out of the way, though he wasn't fast enough to avoid all of the attack. His hand got the brunt of the attack, which caused Terron to instinctively bury his hand in the soil below him.

The Quilava looked down at Zekra, a scowl apparent on its face. It was no longer coated in fire.

It put its foot on Zekra's burnt fur so that she wouldn't attempt to get away.

"Now that you have received your punishment for attempting to batter me, I will ask you a question," it said. "Why did you do such?"

"What?" Zekra asked, too preoccupied by the fire around her to understand the question.

The Quilava stamped out the flames growing around Zekra with its free foot. Once it had done that, it looked back at the Zorua.

"I will say it again; why did you attack me?" the Quilava said with a cold voice. "Answer the question."

"I thought you were a wild Pokémon!" Zekra explained hastily, wanting to get away from the fire-type. "That's what my friend and I were out here for! We wanted to train and we thought that you were a good target since you were in the smokescreen! You know, since Pokémon get blinded in those things!"

The Quilava let out a snort, making small streams of fire come out of its nostrils.

"Is that so?" the Quilava asked. "You believe that a field feral has the capability to understand the mechanics and advantages of impenetrable smog?"

"Yeah…" Zekra said nervously.

The Quilava stared at Zekra with a doubtful expression. It then looked over at Terron, who was checking to see if his hand had sustained any serious burns.

"Acquaintance of this darkness Pokémon!" the Quilava called.

Terron looked up and turned his head to the Quilava.

"Come here so that I may question you and verify the information your companion gives to me," it said.

The Cubone reluctantly made his way over. He was somewhat relieved that this Quilava was no longer attacking them, but he was still worried about what it would do if Terron didn't properly answer the questions.

He could only imagine what the Quilava would do to Zekra.

Terron stopped in couple feet away from the fire-type, wanting to keep a distance from it.

"Do you vouch for your friend when she says that she attacked me because she mistook me for a feral and thought she would gain strength from that?" the Quilava asked.

"Yeah, I do." Terron said quietly, not making eye contact with the fire type. "That's what happened. We're sorry, though. It was a misunderstanding."

The Quilava eyed Terron. After a moment, it decided to believe Terron and took its paw off Zekra. Zekra immediately got to her feet and went next to Terron.

"Fine. I shall believe your truth," the Quilava said. "You no longer have reason to fear me."

Zekra and Terron let out a sigh of relief.

"You mention that you desire to train, if I remember so correctly," the Quilava then said. "Is this so?"

"Yeah, we're trying to get stronger." Terron answered. "We figured battling wild Pokémon would help with that."

The Quilava started to consider something. It then started to walk away from the two.

"If you wish to gain strength, then follow me," the Quilava said without looking at the children. "I know of a more suitable place where your skills may grow and prosper."

Terron and Zekra looked at one another, unsure of whether they should follow the Quilava that they barely met. However, as the Quilava grew farther away from them, the two hastily made up their minds and ran after the fire type.

"I believe you never gave me your names." the Quilava said as the children caught up to it. "What are they?"

"Oh, I'm Zekra," the Zorua introduced. "And this my friend, Terron. What's your name?"

"My name is Novus," the Quilava said. "Nice to meet you, Terron and Zekra."

* * *

**Aurora Town**

After some time of walking in silence, the group made it back out of the Gray Lands and into the beloved town Zekra and Terron called home.

"Now that we have come back to Aurora Town, allow me to show you the place where you main gain the strength you seek," Novus said.

Novus then led the children to the north side of town nearby the police station. Eventually, after much more walking, Novus stopped a few feet away from a particular building. Zekra and Terron glanced at it curiously.

It was a large, dome-shaped building that appeared to be made of many differently-colored bricks. At the very top of the dome was a flag on a pole, bearing a picture of an Infernape and Medicham throwing fists of fire at one another.

"This is a gymnasium," the Quilava explained. "Many Pokémon come here to learn new techniques for battle. I felt that because you two seek a form of that, this organization would suit your needs."

"Yeah, that'd be great, actually!" Zekra said happily. "But, how do you know about this place? No one I know mentions this place."

"Others you know may not know of here, due to not feeling the need of training," Novus suggested. "As for why I know, it is because I am one of the trainers here."

Terron and Zekra looked at the Quilava, their faces clearly expressing their surprise.

"You are?" Zekra asked. "But, then how come you were in the Gray Lands if you work here?"

"I was practicing the art of using black haze," Novus said. "I wanted to see how wide I could make the radius of the skill. I needed as much space as possible, and I felt a vacant field was a choice place to practice."

"Oh, I see," Zekra said with a nod. "Makes sense I suppose."

"Now that your questions have been answered, let us go inside," Novus then said.

Novus led the two into the doorway at the front. Once the three entered inside of the dome, Terron and Zekra looked around in wonder. The room they stood in had literally nothing in it, but what the two were marveling at were actually several different doorways surrounding the room. Each doorway seemed to lead into a hallway that would lead into another room. Above each entrance was a symbol of sorts, such as an orange and red flame, a bolt of yellow, circular shapes of blue, wisp-like streams, and more.

Light flooded in from above through various windows in the ceiling.

A few Pokémon were standing nearby the doors, as if waiting for the trainers. A couple of the Pokémon talked to one another as they waited. None seemed to pay any attention to the group.

"Each of these hallways leads to a room where a trainer may help you." Novus explained. "As evident by the symbols above each hall, every trainer is a different element so they can help everyone."

"Really?" Zekra asked curiously. "Who's the trainer for the dark kinds like myself?"

"You will have to discover that for yourself," Novus simply replied.

"I sure will!" Zekra said eagerly.

She immediately dashed down the hallway bearing the symbol of dark violet eyes that were narrowed in an almost malevolent expression.

As Terron watched her disappear, the Quilava glanced at the hall meant for the fire types and saw a Monferno standing outside it. It was tapping its foot against the ground impatiently.

"I have someone I need to assist, so I will be leaving you," Novus said to Terron. "You are free to come and go as you please in this gymnasium. There is no fee required."

"Oh, okay then," Terron said. "But, before you go; how do you guys run this place if we don't have to pay you?"

"The city pays for it," Novus answered. "They gave us money to construct this gymnasium, and also give us payment for being instructors. They felt that it was necessary to train others in the arts of battle since, after all, it is what we Pokémon are known for. No Pokémon should be lacking in those skills."

"Oh, I see," Terron said. "Alright. Well, see you later, I suppose."

Novus didn't answer back and walked over to the fire- type chamber, where he began speaking with the Monferno.

Terron, no longer needing to talk to Novus, started to head toward the room Zekra had disappeared into since he was always with her wherever they went.

But before he could, Terron saw the symbol for the ground types on a nearby hallway.

It was a tornado of sand, flinging dirt in all directions.

Upon seeing it, Terron's curiosity started to grow. He wanted to follow Zekra, but he knew he'd have no use in being with her with a dark-type trainer. He had no plans to harness dark powers, nor did he feel he wanted to train against the dark-types at the moment

He made his way into the hall of the ground types and proceeded through it. Once at the end of the hall, he found himself in a new room that was much bigger than the previous room. The room itself was mostly unremarkable, with the walls being completely barren and the flooring simply being the dirt from the ground.

However, there was one aspect of the room that immediately caught Terron's eye:

The giant, reddish clay statue that stood proudly at the end of the room.

Terron approached the strange statue and stopped in front of its enormous mass. The statue stood high above the Cubone, its head slightly lowered so that it seemed to be looking directly at Terron. Standing before this unknown creature made Terron feel incredibly small despite being shorter than many Pokémon he met.

The Cubone glanced up at the statue's eyes, curiosity in his eyes.

"Oh, I see you're visiting Groudon."

Terron quickly turned his head to find a Donphan standing next to another door in the room. Alarmed by the sudden presence, Terron hastily took a step backwards. Memories of his incident with the wild Donphan came to mind.

However, once he realized that this Donphan was sentient, Terron was quick to calm down. He wasn't going to be attacked like last time.

"Groudon?" Terron asked oddly. "Is that what this is?"

"Why, of course!" the Donphan replied as it made its way over to Terron. "You don't recognize him? When this statue was crafted, we made sure that his features were exact to as how the legends describe him!"

"He's a Pokémon, right?" Terron then said. "He looks kind of familiar… but I can't remember much about him."

"A Pokémon who's never heard of Groudon… and a ground Pokémon at that!" the Donphan huffed. "Groudon is the one who created the lands of the world! He is our kind's guardian! He is the one who gave us a home within the oceans ruled by Kyogre! We can live because of his influence! You must be incredibly sheltered not to know the creator of the land. Every ground Pokémon practically worships Groudon."

Terron didn't know how to reply. Seeing this, the Donphan let out a sigh to cool down.

"So I can assume you're here because you want to train, right?" the elephant asked.

"Yeah, I was told this place can help me become stronger," Terron replied as he brought his attention to the Donphan. "Are you the trainer of the ground types?"

"Why, yes I am!" the Donphan said proudly. "Master Tunra at your service! And who might you be, new trainee?"

"Terron," the Cubone answered. "Nice to meet you, Master Tunra."

The Donphan gave a pleasant smile. He opened his mouth to say something, but then stopped when he seemed to notice something about Terron.

"Pardon me for asking this," Tunra then said, "but why is it that you don't have a helmet? I realize you're a Cubone due to the weapon in your hands… but never before have I seen one of your kind not wear their helmet."

Terron frowned hard, though he didn't dare show his annoyance in any more ways.

"I lost it," Terron replied blandly. "I woke up one morning and it wasn't on my head anymore. It was probably stolen more than likely, but it's gone. I'm trying to get a new one, though."

"Oh, I see," the Donphan said. "That's what happened."

There was an awkward pause between the two.

"… Well, let's get started on your training," Tunra then said. "Let's go to the center of the room."

Terron nodded as he followed the Donphan to the middle of the room. Once the two made it there, they created a few feet of distance between one another. Tunra stared at the Cubone oddly for a moment before he glanced downward.

"I've never trained a Cubone in all honesty," Tunra stated. "In fact, I didn't even know you Cubone and Marowak left the wild to live in society. I always thought you stayed in the wild since it suited your ways better than society's. However, I see you prove that wrong."

Tunra started to pace around, contemplating.

"Cubone and Marowak, despite being ground Pokémon, are quite different from other ground types," Tunra continued. "You rely on your weapons to win battles. Hardly do I see your kind using the abilities known to the Pokémon of ground. You don't bury underground to strike your enemies from below. You don't manipulate the ground to cause quakes or make it erupt with power. Never do you use the dirt beneath your feet. You Cubone and Marowak are one of us ground types… yet you do not act like us. I've never had to train ground types who don't normally use the soil to their advantage..."

"So are you saying that you can't teach me anything?" Terron asked.

"No, I can teach you," the ground master replied. "It's just that I normally teach those who come here how to _improve_ their powers over the ground. If I were to teach you, I would have to start with the very basics before I teach you what I normally teach. You see, despite preferring bones as a means of offense, you can still learn how to use abilities the rest of us ground types have. Even if you weren't meant to use such abilities, you can still acquire them with training. Of course… I haven't taught basics in a very long time…"

"But you can still teach me, right?" Terron asked.

"Perhaps," Tunra said. "However… like I said, I may need to adjust my teaching methods in order to teach you."

"Alright, well what do you have in mind?" Terron asked curiously.

The Donphan stopped and brought his gaze over to Terron. There was uncertainty in the trainer's eyes.

"I'm not entirely sure, but I believe the best way to teach you for now…"

Tunra suddenly curled up into a tight ball. Terron's eyes grew as the rolled- up Donphan started to speed toward him.

"…Is to see what level your current combat skills are at and see what I can do from there."

The Cubone hastily moved out of the way as fast as he could. The roaming Donphan swept past him, kicking up dirt into the air and getting into Terron's eyes. Terron started to rub his eyes.

"Isn't there some other way you can test me?!" Terron cried. "I don't want to fight! I can't beat you! I tried once with a wild Donphan and I didn't have the right skills to do it!"

Terron lowered his hands after his eyes were clear again. However, upon opening his eyes, the only thing he saw was a rolled up Tunra two seconds away from running him over.

Terron held up his weapon to block the attack. He knew his efforts were futile against such a high velocity assault, but it was all he could think of doing besides standing there.

Terron closed his eyes and prepared for the inevitable pain.

_**THUD!**_

Terron could feel Tunra slam into his weapon. He could feel himself getting pushed backwards a little, but he didn't fall over as he thought. However, it would only be a second longer before he would get crushed anyway.

Terron took in a deep breath.

_This is it._ Terron thought. _This is where I get run over and no doubt get all of my bones broken. Or maybe I'll die. I shouldn't have to put up with this just to train…_

He shut his eyes tighter and grit his teeth.

The second where he thought he would be run over passed.

Terron hadn't been crushed yet.

Another second passed by and Terron was still not injured.

The Cubone, in his confusion, slowly opened his eyes.

Tunra was right in front of him, attempting to roll into the Cubone. However, something was preventing him and thus keeping him spinning in place. Terron looked up to find that his bone club was what kept the Donphan in place. Terron was somehow holding the Donphan back with the weapon.

"How… How am I doing this?" Terron asked in disbelief. "How am I able to stop you from running me over?"

"Many ground Pokémon have strong muscles." the Donphan explained as he continued to roll. "It's what helps us to bury underground so quickly and control the ground. It's also useful for regular attacks such as charging an enemy. You are no different. However… I am simply using a fraction of my own strength. Let's see if you can continue to hold me back when I start trying more…"

Terron felt the momentum of Tunra increase, causing him to slowly slide backwards. He tried to keep his feet firmly in one spot, but they couldn't handle the increase of power. His feet dragged across the ground.

Terron leaned forward to help increase his own power, but it hardly did any good.

"You're going to kill me if you run me over!" Terron shouted when he realized he couldn't do much else. "Can we call it quits before that happens?! I get it! I know I have a lot of strength now! Killing me won't help me learn though!"

"You won't die!" Tunra insisted. "Besides, you need this! The only way you can ever improve your strength is to get used to intense situations! If you don't suffer, then you'll never grow stronger!"

_Yeah, no pain, no gain. _Terron thought irritably. _Seems humans and Pokémon both share that concept. _

_Crack…_

Terron looked up at the bone in his hands. Much to his horror, a crack had formed down the middle.

"No."

The crack grew wider. Terron could see a small glimpse of the marrow in the bone.

"No."

The bone split into two pieces, shards of cartilage flying into the air.

"_**NO!"**_

_**CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!**_

Terron fell backwards as the Donphan proceeded with running over him. Terron couldn't breathe as several of his bones snapped from the massive weight. His insides became crushed and for a brief moment, Terron felt he was going to upchuck all of his organs.

After Tunra had finished rolling over the Cubone, Terron lay there on the ground, unable to get up. Raspy breaths came from Terron as he attempted to breathe.

As he remained there in his pathetic state, Terron saw Tunra in his normal form, looking down at him. He seemed to have an almost disappointed expression in his eyes.

"Hmmm, seems your strength hasn't developed much," the Donphan stated. "You _have_ strength… just not enough to be considered adequate. Well, looks like that'll have to be the first skill we work on. No ground type should have lacking physical strength."

"C-Can't b-breathe," Terron attempted to say.

"And your endurance too, apparently," Tunra then added thoughtfully. "You should be able to handle being run over and getting right back up."

Terron gave a shaky glare to the Donphan as he tried to get up. However, he found that his muscles refused to function and kept him pinned down. The ground master let out a sigh as he went to go retrieve an Oran berry that was resting on a shelf. He then came back to the Cubone and dropped it in Terron's mouth.

Terron slowly chewed down the berry, giving him some strength to sit up. Breathing started becoming easy again.

"I was able to hold you back," Terron said slowly, trying to catch his breath. "You're saying _that_ isn't a sufficient amount of physical strength? How? That's an impressive feat to me."

"I'm afraid not, compared to what I have taught," Tunra replied. "I have seen others not only hold back my rolls, but also toss me across the room in that state. And those weren't even my expert students. So yes, I have much to improve in you. We'll start with getting your strength and endurance at a reasonable level so you may then learn decent ground techniques. I can't teach you how to use the dirt beneath your feet until you've grown in those two areas."

Terron let out a sigh. He hated to know that he was rather weak.

Yet at the same time, Terron was happy to know that he could improve. If he could stop a rolled-up Donphan now, then what more amazing things could he do later with more training?

"We'll start your training the next time you come here," Tunra declared. "I believe it's almost evening, and you should probably go home. So we'll end now. Until then, I have an assignment for you."

"What would that be?" Terron asked curiously.

Tunra gestured over to the shattered remains of Terron's bone club. Terron looked upon his weapon in pity.

"As you can see, your main weapon has been destroyed," Tunra said. "So, I want you to go find a new one. However, don't get any old bone; find one that belongs to a dragon or a fighting Pokémon."

"Why those kinds of Pokémon?" Terron asked.

"Those kinds of Pokémon have the strongest bones of all Pokémon," Tunra answered. "Their bones never break no matter how much damage is done to them, due to all the abuse they go through. If you can find one of their bones, I can guarantee that it will remain whole no matter how much you use it."

"Hmm, I see," Terron said with a nod. "Well, I'll look into that. I'll try to find a place that might have some skeletons of those Pokémon."

"Good," the Donphan said pleasantly. "I'm sure you'll manage to get one."

"Alright, well thanks, Master Tunra," Terron said as he got to his feet. "I'll see you in a couple of days or so."

The Donphan waved goodbye with his trunk as Terron managed to exit the room. His muscles were still sore from being run over, and he felt bad that his weapon was ruined, but Terron managed to get over it. He did so by telling himself that he'd be able to rest and get a temporary bone from the kitchen very soon.

Once Terron made it back to the main room, he found Zekra waiting for him outside the dark-type chamber.

"Oh hey, I thought you were in there!" Zekra said as she came over to the Cubone. "Could hear talking from inside. How'd it go?"

"Good, good," Terron answered. "I got an assignment to do. I'll explain it to you later, though. How about you and your teacher?"

"Oh, she was nice," Zekra said with a smile. "Her name's Arcanum. She's very nice and she said that she can teach me quite a bit. She might even be able to help with my illusion powers even though she's not a Zoroark or anything!"

"Huh, well that is something," Terron said impressively. "Well, seems like we've found the perfect place to train. Sure beats trying to fight wild Pokémon. We can just take a quick walk through town now and have experts teach us. We'll have to thank Novus for showing us this place when we see him again. For now, though, let's just go back to the base and get some dinner and find tomorrow's mission. I think we've had enough excitement for one day."


	14. Chapter 13: The Grave Findings

**Chapter 13**

**The Grave Findings**

* * *

It was the very next day for Terron and Zekra.

The two had already gone on their daily mission, which involved yet another fetch quest regarding a lost item, known as a Heal Ribbon by their Froakie client. The children had felt they needed to redeem themselves after how their last item-search mission ended.

Despite how the two had been slightly nervous about being on their own again, they did well. Their mission took place in yet another Mystery Dungeon, this one called Nemesis Forest. There had been resistance, of course, in trying to accomplish the mission. Many times, wild Pokémon would try to kill the children or steal their food, almost getting away with it. Sometimes, the two even thought they were going around in circles. However, the two remembered King's lessons and were able to fare well against the attacks and managed to find their way through the forest. Eventually, the two had succeeded in their mission. They had found the item and brought it back to the original owner via flying over to the city the owner lived in. The owner, once verifying they brought back the right item, then gave them their payment of 450 Poké.

The two had then reported their success to Emdox once they got back to Aurora Town, who ended up taking a fraction of their money due to the Fellowship's deductions. However, the two weren't too bothered by this, and bought some supplies before storing the remaining amounts of the money away at the Sandslash tunnel.

With much of their day spent, it was thought that the two would go to the gym and train until evening, just as they had done the previous day. Then they would go to the base, eat dinner, select a mission, and go to bed. It seemed like an ideal routine.

Today, however, they decided to try something else.

They were going to go to a special destination they had looked up the previous night on the Fellowship's guide to every location in Shiron; a place where Terron's assignment could be fulfilled.

It had taken about an hour of searching to find a suitable location that fit the needs of both their abilities and types of wild Pokémon, but eventually the two found a dwelling that fulfilled all their qualifications.

Terron and Zekra sat in the arms of Drifblim, enjoying the warm breeze blowing through the air as they were carried towards this special destination.

Terron watched from his seat, with the Fellowship bag around his body and temporary bone club in hand, as the landscape passed by. He still felt the nagging sense of discontent a ground-type feels when separated from the ground, but he tried not to focus on it.

He looked over at Zekra, who was humming an upbeat tune to herself.

"Hey Zekra," Terron started to say, "We'll be back by sunset, right? I mean, what time is it?"

Zekra stopped humming and started to think.

"Hmm, it's a couple hours after noon right now," Zekra answered. "So, depending on how quickly we get to the place, we should be able to get back on time."

Zekra then looked up at the Drifblim carrying her.

"Do you know how long it takes to get to the destination?" Zekra then asked.

"I'd say about an hour from Aurora Town," the Drifblim said. "From where we are now, though, I'd say we have fifteen minutes left."

"Alright, thanks," Zekra said with a smile before looking back at Terron. "So, yeah, we should be back by sunset. And even if we're not, well, it's not a big deal. Just as long as we get there within a couple of hours after dusk. You know, so we can get enough sleep for tomorrow."

"That's good to hear," Terron said with a smile. "Well, hopefully, we'll make it back on time. It might be kinda creepy flying in the middle of the night, being unable to see where you're going…"

"You don't need to worry about that," the Drifblim holding Terron said. "We can see where we're going at all times, even if light isn't available. It's a talent of ghost Pokémon."

"Suppose so," Terron said. "Still, doesn't mean that flying in the complete darkness won't creep _me_ out though since _I_ can't see where we're going."

The Drifblim said nothing.

After those fifteen minutes had passed, Terron saw their destination come into view. His eyes became bright as excitement rushed through his veins.

Before the four Pokémon was a mountain. It was a large mountain, though it seemed even larger to the group due to how low they were flying. Thin clouds surrounded the upper portion of the mountain, creating a type of veil over the land formation. The visible parts of the mountain were a dark brown with specks of green scattered across the surface.

"Diamond Dust Mountain," Terron said in wonder. "That's the place."

"It's weird that they give it that name though when it's only all frosty and pretty in the winter," Zekra then said. "Right now, it looks like a regular mountain. I guess summer does that…"

Something in Zekra's mind seemed to click.

"That's right, it's summer now," she muttered to herself. "I barely noticed with all the stuff that's been going on…"

Zekra seemed to drift off, getting lost in her thoughts.

"Maybe it just stood out better than the other mountains during the winter and they felt it deserved that name," Terron suggested, oblivious to Zekra's change in behavior. "Hm, maybe we could visit the place in the winter to see if it really _does_ look like a solid piece of ice like the book said…"

"It's better this way," Zekra said indifferently, not paying much attention anymore. "Means there isn't any ice or snow we have to walk through."

The Drifblim gently descended and brought the children to the base of the mountain. Once there, they set the children down and floated a few inches off the ground behind them.

"We'll be waiting here until you're ready to come back," Zekra's Drifblim said. "Don't worry about us; take your time."

"You guys don't get bored or anything?" Terron asked curiously.

"No, not really," his Drifblim replied. "We pass the time by talking to one another. Times goes by faster when we do that."

"Huh, I see," Terron said. "Well I guess that's kind of true. Alright then. We'll see you two around. We shouldn't be gone too long. Maybe a couple hours or so."

The Drifblim waved goodbye as Terron and Zekra made their way to a trail that led up the mountain. The trail had a few signs of plant growth, such a small amount of grass here and there, but this particular part of the mountain was otherwise barren.

"Sure is nice to have this place not be a Mystery Dungeon," Zekra remarked, once again appearing focused. "Not quite sure what I would have expected if this mountain _was_ a dungeon. How would we go up if there aren't trails? Would the mountain be like a giant tower and we'd just progress through the inside as if it were hollow? It's so weird."

"Well, thankfully, we don't have to worry about that," Terron said. "And instead, we can focus our efforts on the real reason we're here: finding some corpses of fighting or dragon types so we can get a better club for me. The guide said there are quite a few fighting Pokémon here, and even a couple dragons. So if we're lucky, we can just find their skeleton and take a few bones. Which kind of bone would you say is better anyway?"

"Doesn't really matter if you ask me," Zekra shrugged. "They're both tough bones. But if you had to choose, I guess you should go with the dragon bones. Dragons are pretty strong, and hardly anyone can defeat them, so I guess their bones must be the same way."

"Hm, guess I'll have to keep an eye out for any dragons," Terron said thoughtfully.

"Hey, how come we didn't just look for these bones at the Fellowship?" Zekra then asked. "I mean, they've got so many corpses, so I'm sure they would have had a bone that matched Master Tunra's description."

"I was considering that, actually," Terron said. "But, then I realized that we'd have no way to verify where the bones came from. I'm fairly certain that the Fellowship doesn't organize the bones since they just throw them out. So, I figured that going out to find some bones was better. At least this way, we could _know_ where the bones came from. They should still be attached to the corpse, or if the flesh is rotted away, then the skeleton should still be intact and have a distinct shape. And if there's live Pokémon of the right kind, well, we can just kill them, I guess. Besides, maybe we'll find a helmet for me here too. We don't have to be specific with what kind of Pokémon the skull comes from, though. I don't really care about that. I just want a helmet."

Zekra smiled.

"Still looking for your helmet, I see," Zekra chuckled. "I bet it's going to take you a month just to find one."

"I don't think I'd last a month without a helmet," Terron replied, feeling his head. "I can barely stand a couple of days without it, even though I have no idea what it even feels like to _have_ a helmet. It's just this nagging feeling of necessity. Whenever I think about not having a helmet, which is a lot, I feel like part of my body is missing… like I've lost an arm. I can't deal with that for another month."

Zekra was about to reply, but then she saw something. She stopped and turned to look at whatever she saw, causing Terron to do the same.

The two were looking up at a higher portion of the mountain, about forty feet away from them, where a few large rocks were scattered across the ground. The grass seemed to grow in more abundance there, allowing for more color and liveliness.

But what the two were staring at was a single Pokémon sitting on one of the rocks.

A Mienfoo.

It seemed to be a young Pokémon, though it was possibly a couple of years older than Zekra and Terron. Its fur was scruffier than what it might have looked like as a civilian, and patches of dirt were scattered throughout its body. Little white claws could be seen coming out of its paws. Though Zekra had seen a Mienfoo once, a long time ago, she knew that one didn't have claws. Yet here was this one, with claws that looked like they had always been a normal part of the Mienfoo's anatomy.

The Mienfoo was resting on the stone, staring at the two, motionless. It would blink, but otherwise it remained still. It was almost as though the Pokémon were a statue.

The three looked at one another for a few minutes, none of them going anywhere.

Terron kept expecting the Mienfoo to leave out of boredom or attack them, but it never left its spot. It continued to watch the two, as if curious to see what they would do.

"What should we do?" Terron asked Zekra after a while. "I know that Pokémon in the normal wild don't normally try to attack us, but they always run away whenever they see us coming. This one's not doing anything. It's just… sitting there."

"Well, there are _some_ Pokémon who live in the regular wild that will attack us if they're territorial or irritated," Zekra replied, "but I'm not too sure about this one. It's not showing any kind of animosity toward us. Yet it's not running away in fear…"

"Do you think that we should attack it?" Terron then asked. "I mean, it is a fighting-type… it's got the bones I need…"

"Well, that depends," Zekra answered. "I don't really like battling against fighting-types. They wear me out really easily. Plus, we don't know how strong this thing is. Fighting it might not be worth it."

The Mienfoo tilted its head to the side.

Suddenly, the wild one's eyes grew wide. It sprang to its feet, startling Terron and Zekra.

They prepared themselves for battle, thinking the Mienfoo was going to jump at them.

Much to their surprise, the fighting-type ran _away_ from them and darted up the mountain, moving quite swiftly.

Before Terron and Zekra could question what had just happened, a deep rumbling noise rose from nearby. It was so loud that it felt like there was an earthquake shaking through the entire mountain.

Terron and Zekra looked around, trying to find the source of the sound.

"_GRAAA!"_

A Lairon burst out the side of the mountain a few feet up the trail . Terron and Zekra immediately faced the threat, both startled from its unexpected appearance.

Though the two had read that there were Aron and its evolutions dwelling in the mountain, they didn't think they'd run into one. Those Pokémon preferred to live inside of the mountain, so they thought traveling on the outside wouldn't bother them. However, since Lairon and Aggron tended to be territorial, it should have been thought that they wouldn't want the children anywhere near their territory.

"Zekra, we don't have any kind of abilities to beat this thing," Terron said quietly. "It has that steel all over it…"

"Well, it's not like it'll let us go," Zekra replied, keeping her eyes on the Lairon. "Those things don't back down until you leave the area. If only we had some way to melt the steel…"

All of a sudden, the Lairon ran toward the two, preparing to bash its armored head into their bodies. Despite there being very little room to maneuver in, Terron and Zekra ran to the side of the trail and watched the Lairon rush past them. It had just missed them by a foot.

"Let's just get out of here!" Terron suggested hastily. "The path's open!"

The two immediately took off, sprinting further up the trail. The Lairon, once realizing that the children were getting away, began to chase after them. It wasn't a very fast Pokémon due to all of the steel weighing it down, but it still managed to stay behind Terron and Zekra no matter how far they ran.

Nonetheless, the two continued to flee, hoping to get the Lairon off their tails. With every step it took, the ground started to shake from the wild Pokémon's weight. The tremors nearly caused Terron to trip and fall, but he focused and kept his footing on the ground.

After a minute of running, the Lairon finally stopped chasing the two. It no longer seemed interested in attacking the two.

It seemed that Terron and Zekra had won this 'fight'.

Still, the two didn't stop running. They kept up the pace for another few minutes, making fast progress up the trail. They only stopped when they were both nearly out of breath, slowing to a halt and checking behind them to make sure they weren't being followed.

The Lairon was nowhere in sight.

The two sighed in relief, glad that they could stop running. Deciding to take a break from their long trek, they found a spot nearby a tree and sat down to relax. As they did this, Terron looked around to see if he could spot any sort of wild Pokémon. He didn't know how high up they were on this mountain, but he wanted to be able to find some kind of bone soon. He was starting to feel he'd have to kill a wild Pokémon rather than find a corpse.

Terron found that he wasn't disturbed by this, for some reason. Previously, he was unnerved at the thought, but now, it was starting to feel more natural.

Like it was a part of life.

_Maybe it's because I've been around Zekra so much. _Terron considered. _She's always eating wild Pokémon. So, maybe it's just rubbing off on me. __Still don't feel any better about killing Pokémon that can _talk _though…_

Before Terron could dwell in that thought further, he noticed something sitting in the tree above him.

"Zekra, that Mienfoo is back," he said.

Zekra looked up, and sure enough, saw the same Mienfoo as before, sitting there amongst the branches. In its paws was what looked like the remains of a Teddiursa. The Pokémon glanced down at the two as it ate, clearly not minding that they shared the same tree for a rest stop.

"What is with that thing?" Zekra asked. "Is it toying with us so that it can eat us later?"

"I'm not really sure," Terron replied. "I mean, it can't be a coincidence that we keep seeing it. Clearly this Mienfoo is following us for a reason. But why… what does it find so interesting about us?"

"Well, whatever the reason, it kinda creeps me out," Zekra stated.

The Mienfoo continued to eat its meal in silence, while Terron and Zekra watched it in expectance that it would attempt to attack them. When it finished its meal, the fighting-type dropped the remaining pieces of the Teddiursa, causing the husk to land on the ground nearby the children.

Terron looked at the fleshed-out corpse curiously, seeing the various bones sticking out. While he knew they were insufficient for using as a club, Terron started to see use for the bones that made up the ribcage…

He carefully took the carcass and snapped off pieces of the ribs, trying to get the bones as straight and pointy as possible. Despite feeling disgusted with what he was doing, the Cubone continued his work. He had to start getting over his sickened feelings eventually, so he figured he might as well start now on an already dead body.

Zekra watched Terron pull out the bones, curious to see what he was doing. She figured the Mienfoo wasn't going to bother them, so she no longer kept an eye on it.

"Zekra, I need you to chew on the sharpest end to make it even sharper," Terron said. "Your teeth can do that, can't it?"

"Yeah, I can manage," Zekra said as she grabbed one of the bone fragments. "But what are we doing with these bones? They don't look like good weapons."

"Well, maybe not for bashing others," Terron replied. "But, maybe we can use these ribs as projectiles. Like, little thorns we can throw."

"Oh, I know what you're talking about," Zekra said with an eager smile. "We could use these to throw into the eyes of enemies we couldn't otherwise hurt. Like that Lairon! Yeah, that's a great idea! We can stab their eyeballs and make them go blind!"

"I wasn't really thinking of puncturing their eyes…" Terron said reluctantly. "But, you do make a good point. That would be pretty helpful for battles. So let's just try to make a dozen or so of these bone thorns."

Zekra nodded in agreement as she got to work. As she made the bones sharper, Terron continued to get as many pieces as possible from the Teddiursa corpse. When he had run out of ribs to use, he started looking at the other bones to find other uses for them. Sadly, he found that the other bones were too thick and long to be turned into projectiles.

Still, by the time Zekra had finished, they had created twenty-one decent thorns. Satisfied with the work, Terron took all of the bone pieces and set them on a large leaf he found on the ground. He wrapped the leaf around the thorns, and then put a single thorn through the leaf to keep it wrapped up. With that done, he then put the items in the bag. He wished he had some string to keep the bones together, but Terron would have to make do with what he had.

"Thanks for helping with that," Terron said. "Now we have more ways to defeat other Pokémon."

"You're welcome," Zekra said pleasantly. "Though, I suppose we should really thank that Mienfoo since it dropped that body here."

Terron and Zekra looked up toward the wild Pokémon. As usual, it was watching the two, though this time, with a more curious and puzzled expression.

"Hey, thanks for the bones," Zekra said to the Mienfoo. "I doubt you can understand me… but thanks."

The fighting-type continued to stare at the two, not making any sort of sound.

"Well, I guess we should get going," Terron said. "We've got some bones to search for."

The two got to their feet and headed for the trail again. As they left, the two looked back at the odd Mienfoo to see what it would do.

The wild Pokémon remained in the tree, though it was casting a glance at the children. Terron and Zekra, upon seeing this, waved goodbye to it as they went on their way. They doubted it would understand what their gestures meant, but they still felt like doing such.

The two continued up the mountain, keeping their eyes peeled for any sort of fighting-types or dragons. They spotted a Shuckle sleeping nearby a rock right away, but both of the children knew that the Shuckle was rather useless to them. So, they continued on.

They ascended higher up the trail, noticing that they were getting to the clouds covering the mountain. Visibility would become limited soon, so the two became extra alert to find what they were looking for now.

Only five minutes had passed from this point, when the two spotted something trying to look for food within some shrubs. Curious to know what it was, the two quietly crept over to the sight.

Once they got close enough, Terron and Zekra could see what they had spotted: a Cubone.

It looked exactly like Terron, only it had quite a few scratches along its body. It was trying to pull fruit from deep within the plants. It didn't seem to notice the children watching it.

Zekra looked at the Cubone curiously, and then back at Terron. She found the contrast between the two Cubone very strange.

Terron, on the other hand, wasn't focusing on how much the wild Cubone looked like him. No, he was focusing on the wondrous skull helmet that was resting on the Cubone's head. The skull that was still stained in the blood of its original owner…

Terron could feel a grin creep onto his face. His entire being was tingling with excitement.

Zekra suddenly noticed Terron's behavior. She looked back at the wild Cubone, already knowing what was on Terron's mind.

The Zorua quietly made her way toward the wild one, her footsteps completely silent. Terron considered doing the same, but then he realized that he wasn't very talented at being stealthy. Zekra would probably do a better job since she was a predatory Pokémon and thus was used to doing this.

So, Terron watched from a distance as Zekra crept up to the wild Cubone. When she was only a few feet away from the target, she crouched low to the ground and began to crawl very slowly.

Terron held his breath, feeling he would explode from the anxiety coursing through him.

Zekra quickly pounced at the wild Cubone, knocking it to the ground. The two Pokémon tumbled along the ground as Zekra tried to find a way to pin the wild one down.

"_EEEEKK!"_

The Cubone started to scream as it took its own bone club and attempted to smack Zekra with it. The Zorua immediately bit the arm of the Cubone to make it release its weapon, but unfortunately, it only encouraged the wild Pokémon to flail its weapon around.

Terron immediately ran into the brawl, deciding to take measures into his own hands. He let out a battle cry as he charged at the two, raising his club into the air so he could strike his feral twin. The Cubone, once hearing his yelling, brought its attention away from Zekra and glanced over at Terron. It managed to get to its feet despite Zekra trying to hold it down and just as Terron was going to smack him, the feral threw its arm at Terron.

Zekra, who was attached to that arm, was flung off the ground and rammed into Terron. The impact wasn't strong enough to make her release her grip on the wild Cubone, but it did manage to make Terron fly into a bush. Zekra bit down harder on the Cubone's flesh when she saw this, causing it start hitting her repeatedly with the bone. It tried to get her to release her grip, but Zekra refused to let go. Claws came out of her paws as she swiped at the Cubone's body, trying to get the Cubone to stop attacking her.

Yet, all this did was encourage the Cubone to fight back more. The two became locked in a never- ending scuffle, each trying to get the other to surrender.

Terron slowly immerged from the plants, his body scratched up by the branches and twigs which had cushioned his fall. He could feel the sting of the cuts all over him, but the pain didn't matter to him. He ran toward the Cubone while it was distracted with Zekra and kicked it in the back. The Cubone fell to the ground, followed by Terron jumping onto its back.

Terron grabbed the skull helmet and started to pull it off the Cubone's head. The wild one, realizing that Terron was stealing his helmet, started squirming in an attempt to get up.

But before it could do so, Zekra jumped onto its back as well, further holding down the Cubone.

"You're not going anywhere until we get your helmet!" Terron shouted.

He stamped his foot onto the Cubone's back as he continued to yank at the skull. The helmet seemed to be stuck fast on its head, but Terron wouldn't give up. He _needed_ that helmet.

"Zekra! Help me out!" Terron cried.

The Zorua quickly nodded as the pink light filled her outline and transformed her into a Cubone. She and Terron got on different shoulders of the Cubone and each pulled on a different side of the mask. The Cubone thrashed around more, desperately not wanting to lose the helmet.

"Give me your helmet, Cubone!" Terron shouted. "It's no longer yours!"

The helmet would still not come off the head. Terron grit his teeth.

"Pull harder, Zekra!" Terron commanded.

He and Zekra gave it all their might.

The skull started to crack from all the effort.

_**POP!**_

The mask suddenly came off the Cubone's head, flying out of Terron and Zekra's hands and landing a few feet away next to the mountainside.

The Cubone managed to knock Terron and Zekra off its back, causing them to tumble across the ground.

Rather than go after the mask, however, the Cubone took off in a hurry to a higher part of the mountain.

Terron and Zekra slowly got to their feet, feeling the pain in their backs from being tossed. Zekra slowly changed back to normal, her jaws feeling sore from keeping them locked onto the Cubone for so long.

Terron looked over at where the mask lay, and saw it was still there. He let out a sigh of relief, glad to know that it was all over. His quest for a helmet had ended. He could now claim this one and the only thing left to do would be to get a specific kind of bone.

The Cubone started to approach the weapon, eagerly wanting to put it upon his head. He didn't mind how the skull was cracked in various spots or how filthy it was; he had found what he needed.

_It's finally mine… all mine… _

The ground suddenly started to shake. Terron stopped moving, and his state of happiness abruptly ceased. He recognized this rumbling on the mountain.

_**CRASH!**_

A Lairon, the same Lairon from before, burst out of the side of the mountain a few feet in front of Terron. Apparently, _this_ part of the mountain was part of its territory as well. The Cubone's eyes became wide when he saw what was directly in front of the Lairon's path.

It was headed right for his newfound helmet.

"_**NOOO!" **_Terron cried in despair.

But it was too late. He watched in horror as the steel Pokémon proceeded to run over the skull, snapping it into several pieces before stopping to address Terron.

Terron wasn't concerned about the Lairon, though. He was looking at the fractured pieces of the mask, the mask that was supposed to be his.

The mask that was beyond repair now.

Terron wasn't sure how to respond. He felt so consumed with misery, yet filled with so many other emotions…

"_GRAA!"_

The Lairon started to charge Terron.

All of those emotions filling Terron finally dissolved into a single one: rage.

Terron started to pant, feeling his muscles twitch as he reached into his bag to pull out something.

"Terron!" Zekra screamed. "Get out of the way, you moron!"

Terron didn't hear her.

He pulled out two bone thorns, and put one in each hand. He dropped his club so that he could use his new weapons more efficiently.

Terron brought his eyes up to the Lairon. They were burning with the intense anger from within him.

"_**YOU DESTROYED MY HELMET!"**_ Terron shouted at the top of his lungs. _**"YOU TOOK AWAY THE ONE CHANCE I HAD AT FINDING ONE! YOU RUINED IT!"**_

Terron threw the bone fragments at the Lairon as it started to close in on him. The bones sailed into the air and struck the Lairon in both of its eyes just as it blinked.

The Cubone saw blood and tears begin to leak from the punctured eyes..

"_WRRRRYY!"_

The Lairon swerved out of the way and started to thrash around. It attempted to pull the bones that were stuck in its eyes, but seemed to have no luck.

Terron picked his club from off the ground and charged forward, and while the Lairon was momentarily distracted, he started to strike the Lairon's body with the bone. His attacks didn't do much due to the wild Pokémon's thick armor, but he wouldn't stop. He continued to bash his weapon into the Lairon's steely form.

"Terron, stop!" Zekra cried as she ran over to him. "You're not doing anything! Just let it go!"

"No!" Terron said loudly. "I don't care! Leave me alone!"

Zekra attempted to grab Terron's weapon, but he had learned his lesson from last time, and avoided Zekra's lunges.

As the two fought, the Lairon managed to get over the shock of having its eyeballs punctured. Following the sounds of their bickering, it figured out where they were. It rammed its head into the two of them, knocking them both back into the mountainside. It then ran toward them again, having heard them crash, its eyes filled with a rage within its bloody state.

Zekra and Terron attempted to get up, but their movement was delayed due to the powerful attack.

They found they weren't able to get up as quickly as they wanted to.

Zekra and Terron's eyes grew wide as they watched the steel Pokémon charge at them.

There was nothing they could do.

"_MEEIII!"_

A low, feminine cry filled the air.

Without warning, a particular Mienfoo sprinted across the ground at high speeds before jumping onto the Lairon's back.

Before the steel-type could react, the Mienfoo put her palm onto the armored side of the Lairon.

_**BOOOM!**_

A white light erupted from the Mienfoo's palm before it centralized into a pillar of energy. The Mienfoo jumped off the Lairon as the light blew the steel-type away. The Lairon was tossed across the ground despite how heavy it was, its momentum not ceasing. Eventually, the Lairon fell off the side of the mountain. Its cries could be heard for a few seconds until it hit the very bottom of the mountain.

Terron and Zekra could only imagine if it lived or not.

The Mienfoo gracefully landed back on the ground, her back turned to the children.

The two looked at the fighting-type, their mouths hanging open.

The wild one turned her head at the two, seeing their shocked expressions. Yet, she did nothing. She continued to stand there, like she had the other two times Terron and Zekra saw her.

"Why… Why did that Mienfoo just save us?" Terron asked.

"I don't know," Zekra said, equally in disbelief. "I thought wild Pokémon didn't care about us…"

The Mienfoo started to leave, apparently no longer seeing a purpose in sticking around.

"Hey, wait!" Zekra called to the wild one.

The fighting-type stopped and looked over at Zekra. Zekra tiredly got to her feet and made her way over to the Mienfoo. Unfortunately, the Mienfoo became spooked by this and ran off. She disappeared to a lower portion of the mountain.

Zekra stopped walking and let out a sigh.

"Well, maybe she'll come back," Zekra said in disappointment. "She always shows up for no reason anyway. Just wish I knew why she's following us and why she helped us…"

The Zorua looked back at Terron, who had just pulled out an Oran Berry from the bag. He no longer seemed angry, possibly because the Lairon had been dealt justice. Zekra made her way back to him as he slowly tore the berry apart for the two of them to share.

Zekra sat down as she took her share of the fruit. She and Terron ate in silence, the two trying to gain back their strength.

"… I'm sorry," Zekra said after a while.

"For what?" Terron asked.

"You know, the helmet," Zekra said quietly. "I know you really wanted it. I wish there was some way I could have saved it."

Terron felt a pang of sadness upon being reminded that his prized mask was destroyed. Still, he realized that he couldn't let that get to him. There was no point in dwelling over it.

"It's not your fault," Terron said. "It's mine for not getting it fast enough. But, we'll find another helmet. There's probably other Cubone around here. And if not, well, we always have the market. So, don't feel bad."

Zekra nodded silently, still appearing gloomy about the incident. Terron, however, suspected she was feeling bad not for herself, but for him.

Once the fruit was finished, the two continued on their way up the mountain. They didn't spot the Mienfoo anywhere, but they didn't worry about her. She was a wild Pokémon after all; they'd be leaving her after this journey was finished.

The two went up to the foggy parts of the mountain where the clouds masked everything around them. The clouds were thin, and the two could see the path they walked upon, but it was still hard to tell if there were any wild Pokémon in the area.

After searching thirty minutes for some bones to suit Terron's arsenal of weapons and finding nothing, the two felt it was time to head back. They had been on this mountain for what felt like an hour. If they wanted to get back in time, it was best to go back down the mountain at the moment.

Terron was disappointed that they didn't find anything, but perhaps they'd find something on the way back down.

Just as the two started to head down the mountain, there was a voice.

"Why did they have to send me here when anyone _but_ me could have easily done this mission instead?"

Terron and Zekra stopped. The voice sounded near. The two couldn't see the source of the voice due to the fog in the area, but they could tell where it was coming from.

Curious to know what was going on, the children went toward the voice. It was a little ways up the mountain, in a somewhat large, open space that was almost like a field. No grass grew on this field, which was a bit of a change from how the ground was for a while. The fog was also much thinner here, allowing for almost the same amount of visibility as there might have been if there was no fog.

Zekra and Terron didn't pay attention to that, though. Instead, their sights were focused on a Weavile that was in this open space with the carcass of an Aggron. How that Weavile had managed to take down the Aggron was a mystery to the children, but nonetheless, it was the truth.

Wrapped around the Weavile's neck was a tattered, scarlet-colored scarf, presumably damaged in the battle with the steel-type. A bag sat beside the Weavile's side.

The Weavile sighed in exasperation.

"Whatever. I've got what I need done," the Weavile said. "Better get this over with."

Terron and Zekra watched with curiosity as the Weavile grabbed a section of the Aggron's armor. He started to pull, attempting to pry off the steel that coated the wild Pokémon. As figured, the steel wouldn't come off. It was a permanent part of the Aggron's body.

"Tch, should have figured that this wasn't going to be easy," the Weavile scoffed. "Of course they ask for the materials that are the hardest to get ahold of. Figures of them. Even the Fellowship is better than them when it comes to giving tasks to specific Pokémon. Well, whatever. Guess I'll have to try another way…"

"What's that Weavile talking about?" Terron asked, talking under his breath.

Suddenly, the Weavile turned his head toward the two. He had heard Terron talking, despite how quiet the remark had been.

Before the children could take off running, the Weavile had already sped toward them and stopped in front of them. He looked upon Terron and Zekra with a disapproving glare.

"Why, it seems I've got two eavesdroppers," the Weavile stated. "And what brings you here?"

"Um, we were just looking for something here," Terron said reluctantly.

"Oh, is that so?" the Weavile asked. "Funny, so was I. And how funny that you decided to spy on me after I found what I needed."

"Well, we were just gonna get going anyway," Zekra said hastily, sounding rather timid as well. "We see you're not doing anything really notable and now we're just gonna go…"

Terron and Zekra tried to get around the Weavile, both desperately wanting to get away from this strange Pokémon.

The Weavile blocked both of their paths with his sharp claws. The children backed away.

"Sorry, but I'm afraid I can't let you do that," the Weavile spoke. "In fact, I'm afraid I'm going to have to kill you now. No one is supposed to see me around here."

Zekra and Terron's hearts stopped.

"You can't be serious!" Zekra cried. "We don't even know who you are! _You_ don't know who we are! We don't even know what's going on!"

"Your names aren't of importance," the Weavile said, "nor is your amount of knowledge. You've seen me. I don't let Pokémon see me, nor do I let them see what I've done. That could have serious consequences… consequences that I don't wish to face."

"Consequences?" Zekra repeated oddly. "What does that even mean? What are you talking about?"

"Those questions can't be answered," the Weavile said before taking a hostile pose. "Sorry, but you're not allowed to know I exist anymore. I won't take that risk. Even if you look harmless… you can't stay alive with the knowledge that I exist. No one can."

The Weavile's claws started to glow with a white, metallic energy.

"You're not allowed to know anything," the Weavile said. "I can't afford it. The Fellowship might know… or perhaps the others will…"

"Others…?" Terron asked quietly.

"No more questions" the Weavile spoke harshly. "You're still alive and aware of my presence and know that I killed that Aggron. I can't let things stay this way."

Before Terron or Zekra could ask more, the strange Pokémon suddenly rushed forward, with his claws ready to slash the two into pieces.


	15. Chapter 14: Sacrifices

**Chapter 14**

**Sacrifices**

* * *

The Weavile sped toward Terron and Zekra, ready to strike the two with the glowing, steel power in his claws.

Zekra was quick to change into a Weavile and immediately grabbed Terron once she had finished the transformation. With her newfound Weavile speed, Zekra darted out of the way, taking Terron and the bag around him with her.

The two barely managed to avoid the attack. Had Zekra waited a second longer, Terron probably would have received a nasty blow from the enemy.

"So you _can_ change into other Pokémon," the Weavile said in an almost impressed tone. "I wasn't quite sure if you had enough skill to accomplish that. You seemed so weak, that I didn't know if you had the capability to use basic Zorua skills."

"Shut up!" Zekra retorted.

Zekra dropped Terron and ran toward the Weavile, preparing to use her own Weavile claws. She closed in on the foe, but before her attack could connect, the Weavile managed to grab her wrist. He then flung her into the air.

"Even though you pretend to be me, you're still too slow," the Weavile said. "You have no chance of beating me in a match of speed."

The Weavile jumped toward Zekra as she descended and furiously slashed away at her. Zekra screamed as the claws raked her body, causing her to abruptly change back into a Zorua. Once she had gone back to normal, the Weavile grabbed her paw and slammed her into Terron.

The two slid backwards, kicking up dust and scraping their skins. Once their momentum stopped, the two awkwardly got to their feet. Zekra started to pant from exhaustion while Terron readied his weapon so that he could get his turn in the battle.

Terron was just about to throw his weapon at the airborne Weavile, but before he could, the Weavile let out a large breath toward the two.

It was not just cold air that escaped from the Weavile's maw. Large clumps of snow escaped from the enemy's mouth and descended onto the children with such powerful impact.

Terron held up his arms to block out the ice while Zekra shut her eyes and turned her head away.

_**FWWWWOOOO!**_

The second the ice made contact with Terron, the Cubone started to scream. He had never felt this much pain before.

The snow was so cold. So cold… yet it _burned_.

This ice might as well have been white-hot flames.

The ice was starting to overwhelm him. Ice crystals formed on his skin, slowly turning him into a living icicle.

Terron's instincts screamed not to become a part of the ice.

Ice… _Ice_… was his enemy.

_I have to get rid of this ice! _Terron thought in desperation. _This ice… I hate it! Get away from me! I don't want to be frozen! Stay away from me, ice!_

The Cubone struggled to avoid his unwanted fate, but his body only responded by sending waves of burning pain throughout him.

_THE ICE… IT STINGS! _

Terron glanced at Zekra, finding that she was also being assaulted by the snow, but didn't seem in nearly as much pain as Terron. Her paws were slowly becoming encased in the ice, making it so that she couldn't get out of the blizzard.

Before Terron could make further notes of what was happening to his companion, he felt the ice wrap around his hands and feet.

_GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF! GET IT AWAY FROM ME! _

It spread so that only his head was left uncovered, bringing the burning wherever the ice touched.

Terron started to hyperventilate.

_PLEASE! MAKE IT STOP!_

_**THUD! THUD!**_

Terron and Zekra were blown backwards, removing them from their icy prison as they hit the ground. Despite the pain of the new attack, Terron let out a sigh of happiness, as he no longer felt the ice.

He was free of its chilling clutches.

That relief was short-lived, however, when Terron noticed the Weavile was standing directly over them. His claws were raised high so he could deliver a lethal blow to the Cubone and Zorua.

Zekra and Terron attempted to run, but their muscles were stiff from having suffered from the blizzard. Their bodies wouldn't move sufficiently.

"Looks like you're both weakened down enough so that you'll die by my next strike," the Weavile said. "The ice should be numbing you and make pain less noticeable. So, if you want this quick and painless, I recommend you stay still. You want that, don't you? Or would you prefer a painful death, where you try to escape and I'm forced to weaken you down some more through blood loss?"

Zekra glared at the Weavile and tried to pounce at him. However, her muscles remained frozen and made her attack weak. The Weavile was easily able to avoid it.

"Time to put an end to you two," the Weavile said. "I've wasted enough time. I have a task to accomplish, and I won't let you kids waste any more of that precious task time."

Terron watched in horror as the Weavile brought his claws down toward the two.

He was going to rip them apart.

Terron tried to get out of the way, but the Weavile was moving too fast, and the Cubone's body remained sluggish from the ice.

All he could do was continue to watch.

Terron closed his eyes.

"_MEEEEEIIII!"_

Terron's eyes shot open. He could recognize that voice from anywhere.

The Weavile hesitated, sparing Terron's life. He looked around cautiously, trying to find where the voice was coming from.

A particular Mienfoo jumped off a ledge overlooking the battle sight and landed right behind the Weavile. The Weavile turned around to face this threat, but when he did that, the Mienfoo put her paw onto the Weavile's chest.

The Weavile's eyes grew when he realized what was happening.

_**BOOM!**_

The white light erupted from the Mienfoo's paw, sending the Weavile flying backwards.

After being blown a few feet away, the Weavile abruptly got back to his feet. There was a weakened look in his eyes due to the very effective attack, but the Weavile was far from finished.

"You…" the Weavile snarled at the Mienfoo. "I remember you. I saw you when I was climbing up this mountain. Why are you helping those kids? You're a wild! Those kids mean nothing to you!"

The Mienfoo said nothing.

"Well, if you're going to side with those two," the Weavile said, "then I'm going to have to kill you too!"

The Weavile rushed forward, claws ready to slash away at the fighting-type. The Mienfoo responded to this by sprinting forward as well, her speed equivalent to the Weavile's.

The Weavile leapt at the Mienfoo once he got close enough, swiping his claws furiously at her. Rather than attempt to dodge the attacks, the Mienfoo sprang at the Weavile and delivered a powerful kick. The Mienfoo received a fair share of scraps from having chosen not to avoid the attack, but it seemed worth it as the Weavile was knocked back.

The Weavile swiftly got to his feet, and seeing that his clawing wouldn't help in the battle, tried a different tactic.

The Weavile rushed at the Mienfoo once more, but rather than strike with his claws, he blew a gust of frigid air and sleet at the Mienfoo. Seeing this, the Mienfoo spat out a barrage of star-shaped energies from her mouth to intercept the attack.

Expected by none, both of their attacks swept past one another's and impacted their desired targets.

Stars slammed into the Weavile's face. Ice pelted the Mienfoo's body.

Both cringed at the pain.

The Mienfoo rubbed her face to rid herself of the frost that had was covering her eyes. The rest of her body was coated with the cold, but she didn't seem to pay much attention to that, possibly because the ice didn't affect her as much due to her typing.

The Weavile was much quicker to recover, unfortunately, due to the Mienfoo's attack not having any side effects. Once he saw that the Mienfoo was occupied, he readied himself for a surprise attack.

The Weavile put his claws close together and slowly, a dark purple sphere formed between the claws. It crackled with black energy.

Terron, who had been attempting to get his body to work properly, saw what was being created in the Weavile's hands. He had seen King use that same attack.

He knew what that attack was supposed to do.

Even if fighting-types were resistant to dark powers, Terron knew that this attack was still powerful enough to cause immense damage.

Before Terron could warn the Mienfoo, the Weavile released the power of Dark Pulse upon the fighting-type.

Black rings struck the Mienfoo just as she became aware of the oncoming attack.

"_**MEEEEEEIIII!"**_

The rings sunk into the Mienfoo's heart, where it absorbed every last bit of the attack.

When the attack ceased, the Mienfoo fell to her knees, panting as her muscles trembled. Her eyes darted around aimlessly.

"_Mei… Mei…"_

Her voice was filled with panic and fear, a drastic change from her mellow, focused tone.

Terron could only imagine what the Dark Pulse had implanted in her soul.

With his opponent now down, the Weavile took the opportunity to strike. His right claw started to glow white as he sped forward. There was nothing to stop his attack.

He aimed for the disoriented Mienfoo's heart.

Terron scrambled to his feet, fighting off the numbness.

But by the time Terron had managed to stand…

_**SLASH!**_

"_**EEEEEEEEAAAAAHHHHHHH!"**_

The Weavile's attack had connected.

Blood was leaking out of the Mienfoo's body and it stained the Weavile's claw.

The attack, however, did not strike the chest of the Mienfoo.

At the very last second, she managed to gain enough composure to understand what was going on.

She had attempted to stop the attack.

Now, the Mienfoo's right arm was blocking her heart. She had three deep, bloody streaks in that arm.

The Weavile stood a few feet away from her, scowling at how he had missed his chance to finish off the fighting-type. Still, the Weavile didn't remain discouraged. He'd finish off this Mienfoo one way or another. The Mienfoo was still disoriented. She couldn't properly dodge the attacks.

_**SLASH!**_

Three more claw marks formed on the Mienfoo's other arm, though these weren't as deep.

_**SLASH!**_

More marks appeared across her face. The streaks just barely missed her eyes, sparing her the possibility of becoming permanently blinded.

Zekra finally managed to get to her feet. Once she saw the gruesome scene happening before her, she looked over at Terron.

He was already running toward the Weavile, despite how tired and weak he felt. The bag he once carried was resting where he had been standing. He had abandoned in so that nothing could weigh him down.

The Weavile dealt a few more strikes, trying to wear down the Mienfoo so that she would be weak enough to kill in one shot. He was so busy doing this, in fact, that he didn't notice Terron coming up behind him. Just as the Weavile was going to deliver yet another slash to the wild one, Terron leaped toward the Weavile and grabbed hold of the scarf around his neck.

The sudden weight of the Cubone caused the Weavile to almost get choked by his own scarf and made him slip up. He fell onto his back, where the scarf slowly unraveled from his neck.

Terron, seeing an opportunity, rammed his weapon into the Weavile's head. The Weavile cringed from the bashing, but he only needed to be struck once before the Weavile grabbed Terron's bone and forced the Cubone to stop attacking.

"Oh, it's _you_ again!" the Weavile said in exasperation. "I almost forgot you weren't dead yet. After I'm done with this Mienfoo, I'll deal with you."

Without warning, the Weavile flung Terron by the use of the bone club. Terron landed on the ground a couple yards away, feeling his back throb painfully. He slowly sat up, wanting to try attacking again. He wasn't sure if he could, but Terron didn't want to stand around and do nothing anymore.

All of a sudden, the Weavile became still. He no longer attacked. He started feeling around his neck where the scarf should have been, only to find it was gone.

"The scarf… where's the scarf?!" the Weavile cried, his voice becoming panicky. "Where is it?! _Wher_e?!"

The Weavile turned around to find Terron, who had the scarf in his grip. When Terron had been tossed, the Cubone had taken the scarf with him unintentionally. Terron looked at the scarf in his hands, finding it shocking that he managed to hold onto the scarf through that.

A strange look of desperation became apparent on the Weavile's face.

"Give me that scarf, kid!" the Weavile screamed.

The Weavile sped at Terron. Terron hastily got up and got ready to take off. Yet, the Cubone wasn't fast enough. The Weavile was already closing in on Terron as he managed to get to his feet.

"That scarf is _mine!_" the Weavile cried, his voice gaining a slightly insane tone to it. "That scarf means everything to me!"

Just then, Zekra as a Mienfoo came down upon the Weavile from high up and delivered a roundhouse kick to the enemy. The Weavile fell back since he been unable to block the attack in time.

"Terron!" Zekra cried. "Don't let him have the scarf! I don't know why this Weavile wants it so bad, but maybe we can use that to our advantage!"

As Zekra said this, the Weavile sprang at the Cubone, wanting to steal his scarf back. Just as Zekra was going to stop the Weavile, the original Mienfoo appeared in front of Terron. She was a complete mess with the various cuts bleeding profoundly, and her eyes were unable to focus, but the Mienfoo still stood strong.

As the Weavile leapt at her and Terron, the Mienfoo held out her paw and focused the white energy into it. She cringed from having to hold up her arm, but the Mienfoo wouldn't let the pain overwhelm her.

Just as the Weavile was to strike his claws into the Mienfoo since she was acting as a shield to Terron, the Mienfoo shoved her paw onto the Weavile's face.

_**BOOM!**_

White light filled the air as the Weavile was tossed back. The Mienfoo fell to the ground, the rapid blood loss starting to take its toll on her.

Terron looked at the Weavile.

He was slowly getting up. He was weaker, but he wasn't defeated. He was a long way from being defeated.

When Terron saw this, he finally realized something.

_This battle… we can't win it._ Terron thought. _That Weavile's too powerful. We can't keep fighting. We're all just going to die._

Terron glanced at the scarf in his hand.

His grip tightened around the scarf as an idea formed in his head. He'd have to follow this idea if he wanted everyone to live.

Terron ran toward the edge of the mountain.

"Where do you think you're going?!" the Weavile cried to Terron. "Get back here with my scarf!"

The Weavile rushed forward, going much faster than he had throughout the battle. He went so fast that Zekra was unable to stop him as he ran right past her.

Terron stopped at the mountainside, where he could see the very bottom of the mountain. It was a very long way down.

Just as Terron was going to perform what he had in mind, the Weavile caught up with Terron and grabbed ahold of the scarf. He tried to yank it out of Terron's grip, but the Cubone refused to let go.

"Let go, kid," the Weavile said venomously. _"Let go… I need this scarf… I NEED it…"_

Suddenly, something started happening to one of the Weavile's claws. It was starting to change. A couple wisps of white were streaming out of his claw. Terron nearly released the scarf from shock, but he held on.

"_**GIVE ME THE SCARF!" **_the Weavile cried, his voice becoming utterly deranged. _**"YOU DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH THIS SCARF MEANS TO ME!"**_

The Weavile released a breath of chilled air at Terron, causing Terron to scream as the ice crystals formed on his muzzle. This newfound pain caused him to yank the scarf with spastic movements, which surprisingly tore the scarf from the Weavile's grip. The Weavile's claws tore through the scarf upon having Terron rip it out of his hands, further damaging the fabric.

"You want this scarf?!" Terron cried through his pain. "Then TAKE IT!"

With as much strength as he could muster, Terron tossed the scarf off the mountainside. It plummeted down the mountain, slowly becoming smaller as the distance between it and Terron grew.

The Weavile didn't hesitate to go after the scarf. He jumped off the cliff with absolutely no reluctance, willing to risk his life to get the scarf. Terron watched the Weavile fall for a couple of seconds, listening to his shrill screams.

Terron shook off the crystals that rested on his head and took a few deep breaths to calm down.

He knew that he didn't win this battle. He had only delayed it.

The Weavile would be back if he managed to live.

Terron was rather sure that the Weavile had the capability to survive such a fall.

The Cubone retrieved the bag he had deserted and made his way over to Zekra, finding that she was back in her Zorua form and glancing down at the Mienfoo. The fighting-type wasn't moving, but she still appeared to be breathing.

Terron stopped in front of the wild Pokémon. Remorse slowly overcame him.

"She saved us…" Zekra said. "Why did she save us? Why did she come back to die for us?"

"I don't know," Terron replied. "But, we have to get out of here. That Weavile's going to come back. We need to get off this mountain and find the Drifblim."

Terron walked away, getting ready to go down the mountain. He didn't want to look at the Mienfoo any longer. He no longer wanted to feel pity on her. King had warned him about developing sympathy to wild Pokémon.

"Terron," Zekra called quietly.

The Cubone stopped.

"We were looking for a fighting-type to get bones from," Zekra started to say, her voice rather reluctant. "This Mienfoo… she's a fighting-type. She's dying, so killing her wouldn't be so hard. She has the bones you're looking for. And her head looks like it could make a good helmet for you…"

Terron glanced at the ground for a second. Zekra was right; this Mienfoo contained all that he was looking for. Taking those bones would be so easy…

The Cubone approached the Mienfoo. He stopped in front of her, seeing all of the cuts as they continued to leak blood.

This Mienfoo didn't have much longer to live.

The Cubone flipped her onto her back. Her eyes were still open, but they were glazed over. It was as though she wasn't aware of reality anymore.

Terron slowly raised his weapon to bring the sharp end of his bone into the wild one's heart.

_I need these bones… I need the helmet… _

Zekra stood back and waited for Terron to do what needed to be done.

_I just need to kill her… that's all. I've knocked out several Pokémon before. I was even thinking that killing Pokémon wasn't so bad. It's easy. It's like knocking out Pokémon. Only… they never wake up._

Terron could feel himself shaking.

_She's dying already. I just need to finish her off and put her out of her misery._

Terron grit his teeth.

_I need to be stronger! Those bones are the key to that! The only way to get them is by killing her! _

The Mienfoo's eyes fluttered from lightheadedness, then closed. She had lost too much blood. The end was growing near for her.

Terron glanced at her wounds, having small flashbacks of how the Mienfoo sustained them.

_I… I don't care that she saved us! She's just a wild Pokémon! _

Terron shut his eyes.

_I don't owe anything to this Mienfoo! _

Zekra turned away, not wanting to watch Terron's inner turmoil manifest itself in his facial expressions.

_JUST KILL HER! LET ME KILL HER!_

_**Thump.**_

Terron's club fell to the ground, next to Terron's side. Zekra looked back at the Cubone to find that he was gasping heavily. He looked like he was about to cry.

The Zorua cautiously went up to the Cubone and put her paw on his side.

"Terron…" Zekra said, trying to comfort him.

"We have to get this Mienfoo back to Aurora Town," Terron abruptly said, his words shaky.

Zekra looked at the Cubone in disbelief.

"Why?" Zekra asked. "I thought we were going to kill her. I mean, if you can't do it, I guess I could…"

"No, we're not killing her," Terron said firmly despite his broken state. "We're going to save her. The Fellowship should have a medical center. We'll take her there."

"But, how are we going to bring her down the mountain?" Zekra asked. "I mean, we can't just carry her. She's going to die soon at the rate she's bleeding. And that Weavile might find us…"

"_You're_ going to bring us down the mountain," Terron then said. "You're going to change into a Drifblim and take us off this mountain through the air."

Zekra backed away as her jaw dropped open.

"Are you kidding me?!" Zekra asked in disbelief. "I can't do that! I can only change into Pokémon that are right in front of me! Plus, I don't think I can hold both of you!"

"Zekra, you have to," Terron replied, desperation entering his voice. "We have to make it up to this Mienfoo somehow. You only have to take us to the Drifblim. I'm sure they can take care of us from there. But, you're the only one who can get us to them fast enough. So please, Zekra, just try."

The Zorua glanced at the fighting-type, seeing the blood continue to flow out of her cuts.

Pity came upon her, both from considering Terron's words and realizing that the Mienfoo didn't deserve this awful fate, and from seeing Terron looking so miserable. Zekra had never seen him so melancholy.

The Zorua sighed as she closed her eyes to concentrate.

As she did this, the Cubone reached into his bag and pulled out an Oran berry. He squeezed the juice out of the fruit with his paws and poured it into the Mienfoo's mouth. He knew that the juice wouldn't cure the Mienfoo of her injuries, but it would at least give them more time to save the fighting-type.

After putting the dried-up fruit away, Terron watched as a light covered Zekra's form and slowly changed her. It took about a minute, but her outline became that of a Drifblim. When the light died down, however, the Cubone saw that Zekra's new form was flawed.

The streamer-like hands of the Drifblim were bent and crooked. The 'X' on her face was lopsided and her eyes were the same as her Zorua eyes. Still, she had become a Drifblim. Her current form was sufficient enough.

Zekra carefully wrapped two of her arms around the Mienfoo and wrapped one other arm around Terron. Carefully, she attempted to lift the two off the ground. It was a tiresome process, but Zekra managed to get all of them a couple feet into the air within thirty seconds.

"You guys are so heavy…" Zekra groaned. "I feel like I might accidentally let you go. I don't know if I can get us down the mountain this way."

"Just try," Terron said. "You're doing great so far."

Zekra drifted over to the cliffs and, after taking a deep breath, she went over the side of the mountain. Unfortunately, Zekra was unable to remain floating and the weight of Terron and the Mienfoo dragged her down. Terron clung to Zekra's arm as they plummeted down the mountain, watching the scenery fly past them at high speeds.

He could feel Zekra's grip around him starting to loosen. He grabbed ahold of her arm with one hand and used his other hand to grab the Mienfoo by the paw.

Not long after he did that, Zekra's hold on the two released. Though releasing the two didn't change much, as they were all falling down at the same speed, Terron still held onto his two companions. If he could get Zekra to fly again, at least she wouldn't need to use so much energy with carrying them. Terron would just hold on instead.

Terron gulped as he saw the land becoming nearer and nearer.

"_**Zekra!" **_Terron cried. _**"Please, Zekra! Try to fly again! We're going to die!"**_

The Drifblim looked upon Terron, her eyes filled with weariness.

"I'm… sorry," Zekra managed to say. "I can't… go on…"

"_**Yes you can!" **_Terron insisted. _**"You just need to stop us from falling and slowly get us to the ground! We're almost at the ground, so you don't need to do it for very long!"**_

Zekra tiredly looked at the upcoming ground. It was so close. It was probably thirty seconds away at the rate they were falling.

The Drifblim squeezed her eyes shut as she used the last bits of her strength to stop their descent. Terron squeezed the Mienfoo's paw tighter as he tried to keep his hold on her as well as on Zekra herself.

Terron glanced at the ground as their descent slowed. The spot they were going to land in was not too far away from the Drifblim. He could see that they were only a few hundred feet away.

Zekra was so close to making a complete stop in the middle of the air.

But then…

_**THUMP!**_

The three hit the ground.

Terron lost his grip on the girls as they all tumbled in separate directions.

Thankfully, none of them had sustained serious injuries from the fall. Zekra had managed to slow down their descent enough so that the impact wasn't life-threatening.

Terron slowly got to his feet, feeling sore from having hit the ground. He looked back at his companions to find that they were both unconscious. Zekra had already changed back into her usual form and was breathing shallowly. Her body was coated in the blood of the Mienfoo from holding the fighting-type.

The Cubone looked upon them in melancholy. Even though he was glad that Zekra had managed to save them, Terron felt guilty for making her use up all her energy.

She was just like the Mienfoo now.

"Hey, are you children alright?" a voice said behind Terron.

The Cubone turned around to find the two Drifblim floating besides him, appearing very concerned about what they were witnessing.

"We saw you falling from the mountain," one of the Drifblim spoke. "We came as fast as we could to help you. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Terron said. "But my friends… they need help. I think Zekra will be fine with rest, but the Mienfoo… she's going to die unless we get her to the Fellowship soon."

Without questioning Terron as to why he suddenly had this Mienfoo with him or why he wanted to help her, the Drifblim immediately went over to the collapsed Pokémon and picked them up. They each held one Pokémon, wrapped tightly in their arms. The Drifblim holding the Mienfoo wrapped all of its arms around the wounds, attempting to stop the bleeding and give the Mienfoo more time to live.

The Drifblim that held Zekra then wrapped its arms around Terron before it took off into the sky with the other Drifblim. The sun was starting to set over the horizon, creating such a beautiful scene of color as the five flew through the air.

But none noticed it.

* * *

**Aurora Town Fellowship Base**

It was evening by the time the three made it to their destination. Even with the Drifblim flying as fast as they could, it had taken forty minutes to come to the Fellowship. The Drifblim gently set the children on the ground, carefully removing their arms from around their bodies.

Terron felt exhausted. He felt so sore from the fall, and from the fight with the mysterious Weavile. He would have taken a nap while he was flying, but he was too worried about the well-being of his companions. He had also eaten an Oran berry along the way, but he didn't feel it helped much.

"Thank you," Terron said to the Drifblim. "I'm not sure what we would have done if you weren't there."

"It's no problem," one of the Drifblim said. "We're glad to know you're safe as well."

Terron was about to say something, but then, he noticed a certain Pokémon climbing down the trunk of one of the trees.

It was Garter. He hastily made his way off the tree and went to Terron. He had a small smile on his face, as if he were excited about something. Garter was about to say something to Terron, but then, he noticed that something was very wrong with Terron's team. The Ariados glanced down at Zekra and the Mienfoo, who were lying motionless on the ground. His pleasant expression immediately disappeared.

"What… what happened to these two?" he asked, horrified by the sight.

"I'll explain later," Terron abruptly said. "This Mienfoo's going to die unless she gets some help. We need to get her inside. You have a medical center, don't you?"

"Yes, of course we do," Garter replied. "I'll take her there for you. What about Zekra, though? And you? You both look like a mess."

"I'll just take her to our room," Terron answered. "She just needs rest. She's tired from using her illusion abilities for too long. As for me… I'm fine. Don't worry about me. But please, hurry and help the Mienfoo. She's the one who needs the most assistance."

Garter nodded before wrapping up the Mienfoo's wounds in silk to temporarily block off the blood. He then put her onto his back and hurried away into another section of the base.

Terron sighed in relief and looked at his Zorua friend. Now, he just needed to take of her.

"Thanks once again," Terron said to the ghosts behind him. "I'll see you around."

"Will you be able to get Zekra to your room by yourself?" one of the asked, sounding concerned. "We could help you if you needed some."

"Yeah, I can manage on my own," Terron replied. "You two have given me so much help, though. I appreciate it."

Reluctantly, the Drifblim drifted away, going back to their transportation station. Terron carefully picked up Zekra and carried her inside of the tree. Holding her was tiresome and several times he felt he might collapse, but he kept going.

Fellowship members who were hanging around outside of their rooms noticed Terron passing by them.

"Hey, kid, do you need some help?" a Prinplup asked. "I don't think you should be carrying someone in the condition you're in."

"No, I don't need help," Terron said abruptly.

Terron continued walking. He didn't have to walk long to have another member notice him.

"I can help you if you, if you want," an Infernape offered. "You look like you could use some."

"No, I don't," Terron replied. "Please, leave me alone."

Many more Fellowship members asked if the Cubone needed help. Yet, every time, Terron denied them and kept going. He needed to do this himself.

He slowly climbed up the stairs of the base, feeling weaker with each step he took.

But Terron wouldn't stop. He needed to get to Zekra to her bed.

_It's my fault she's like this. _Terron thought. _She's like this because I made her use those powers. I know I had a good reason, but I didn't think she'd actually collapse… _

Terron stumbled, causing him to fall onto one of the steps.

_I need to make it up to Zekra, somehow. Taking her back to the room myself isn't enough. _

Terron wearily got to his feet and continued climbing.

_I'm… a terrible friend._

After slogging up the stairs for what felt like an eternity, Terron finally made it back to their room. He carefully set her down in her pile of hay, making sure he didn't injure her in the process.

And then, unable to stay keep going, Terron collapsed onto the Zorua, his head landing on her back.

His eyes shut as his mind melted away into the regions of unconsciousness.

_I'm sorry, Zekra. _

Those were his last thoughts before Terron completely shut down.


	16. Chapter 15: Additions to the Team

**Chapter 15**

**Additions to the Team**

* * *

The next morning, Terron finally woke up. He still felt sore from yesterday's adventure, but at least he no longer felt overwhelming fatigue.

The Cubone found himself still in Zekra's bed, but the Zorua wasn't there anymore. Puzzled, Terron looked around him to see if she was still in the room.

Sure enough, Zekra was in the bedroom. She was sitting in front of the single window in their room, staring out into the distance. There was a pensive expression in her eyes.

"Oh, you're awake," Terron said.

Zekra looked back at Terron. She mustered up a small smile.

"Yeah, woke up about a couple hours ago," Zekra replied. "I figured I'd wait for you to wake up too. Didn't think you'd sleep in until almost noon, though."

Terron turned away, feeling slightly embarrassed that he had been asleep for so long. He slowly sat up. He then saw the Mienfoo's blood still stained into Zekra's fur, making him remember what had made Zekra do yesterday. Guilt overcame him once more.

"I'm… I'm sorry," Terron said sadly.

Zekra glanced at Terron with an odd expression.

"For what?" she asked.

"For making you turn into a Drifblim," Terron answered. "It's my fault that you fainted. I shouldn't have pushed you so much. I'll make it up to you, though. I promise."

Terron waited for Zekra to say something. She wasn't answering right away, making Terron worried that she was upset with him.

Zekra let out a sigh.

"It's fine, Terron," Zekra said after some time. "I'm not mad. You were just trying to save that Mienfoo. It's not your fault that I'm not as skilled as I want to be with my abilities. But, I suppose yesterday was an improvement since I lasted longer than I used to."

"If you say so," Terron replied unsurely.

There was silence between the two for a moment.

"Do you want to go check on the Mienfoo, now that we're both awake?" Terron then asked.

"Well, we might as well," Zekra said. "Not like anyone else is going to check on her and tell us how she's doing."

Terron and Zekra then left the bedroom and headed for the medical wing of the Fellowship. Despite the fact that there was a hospital within Aurora Town, the Fellowship had their own version of a hospital that was exclusive to their members and clients. They felt it would be less of a hassle if they had their own doctors to take care of their members. It would save a lot more time, money, and explaining in certain cases.

The two found themselves in that medical center not much later, waiting in the lobby. Various Pokémon were sitting in piles of hay that rested near the walls. Terron and Zekra approached the counter, where a Bayleef stood.

"Hey, we wanted to visit a friend of ours," Zekra said. "She came here last night. She's a Mienfoo. Do you know where she is?"

"Ah, the Mienfoo," the Bayleef said with a smile. "I remember her coming in. Very hard to forget her when one of the leaders brought her in. Yes, let me get someone to take you to her."

The Bayleef looked over to its side.

"Can you bring these two to Room Twenty-One of the Fighting-Type Wing?" it asked.

A Sylveon then came over to the children and nodded in understanding. It looked back at the two, wearing a bright smile.

"This way, please," the Sylveon spoke.

Terron and Zekra followed after the Sylveon, where they walked in silence for the next couple of minutes. The children glanced at each other occasionally, feeling anxious about the Mienfoo. They had hoped she had managed to survive, despite being hospitalized.

The three eventually came to the right room. The Sylveon carefully opened the door and let the children inside. The room was rather simple, with one window, a small table to set meals on, and a bed next to such table. All of the walls were painted light green.

In the bed was the Mienfoo, fast asleep. Most of her body was covered by the thick bed sheets. A few bandages were wrapped around her exposed arms and face.

Standing by her bedside was Emdox. He was staring down at her curiously.

When he noticed the presence of the children, the Xatu turned to face them.

"Oh, it's you two," Emdox said before looking at the Sylveon. "Thanks for bringing these two. You may go. I'll keep an eye on them."

The Sylveon nodded before exiting the room and shutting the door. The children were alone with Emdox and the unconscious Mienfoo now.

"What are you doing here?" Terron asked curiously. "Don't you have to manage the registration office?"

"I told Rayne to manage that until I return in a while," Emdox answered. "I figured I'd come down here since Garter was telling me about your friend. Let me assure you though; your friend is fine. She's stable and should be able to get out of the hospital as soon as she wakes up."

Terron and Zekra let out a sigh of relief.

"Wait, how is she able to heal _that_ quickly?" Terron then asked. "I mean, she almost died and lost so much blood. No one can recover that fast."

Emdox looked back at the Mienfoo.

"She has a special ability that very few kinds of Pokémon possess," the Xatu explained. "This ability lets her heal at a phenomenal rate when she's not in combat. We call this ability "Regenerator". Of course, it won't save her if she's on the brink of death. It can't stop severe bleeding. But, thanks to the nurses in fixing that particular problem, her ability was able to take care of the rest of her problems."

"Oh, I see," Terron said. "That's a pretty useful ability then. I'm glad she's able to recover so quickly."

Emdox nodded and continued to stare at the Mienfoo.

"Really though, why _are _you here?" Zekra then asked. "I'm sure you don't do this for every member that gets injured."

"There are two reasons," Emdox answered. "One is because I have a message to deliver to you two. I was going to go to your room and wake you up, but I realized that you would be coming here anyway and plus, it would be less of an intrusion."

Emdox looked back at the children.

"Len decided to give your team the day off, today," the Xatu said. "He thought you could use some time to yourselves after what you went through yesterday. Of course, he wants to talk to you about that later in return for letting you have this day of leisure. Nonetheless, you're exempt from fulfilling a mission today."

"I didn't know you guys gave members free days," Terron said in surprise.

"We usually don't except for particular holidays or important events," Emdox replied. "But, it happens for our teams who go under severe turmoil in their day. We realize it's best for them to rest before sending them out on yet another mission."

Terron wasn't sure what to say. He didn't really think that yesterday was _that _bad since his friends were still alive and recovering quickly, but the Cubone wasn't going to complain. He could make use of the day off.

"What's the other reason for why you're here?" Zekra then asked.

Emdox paused.

"The second reason… is because this Mienfoo reminds me of one of my friends," the Xatu replied, almost reluctantly. "A friend… who is also a member of my team and someone I cherish."

"King?" Zekra asked, remembering the Bisharp's story.

"No, not him," Emdox said with a laugh. "Though, I'm surprised you know his story. But no, it's another teammate. Her name's Jade. You haven't met her yet. She's out on a long-term mission with two other members."

"Jade… I think Bane and Rayne were mentioning her," Terron remarked. "But, why does the Mienfoo remind you of Jade?"

"Because Jade was a feral, just like this Mienfoo," the Xatu answered. "And just like this Mienfoo, she was always a feral. She was born in the wild, unlike King, who lived in his own little civilization at birth. Just looking at this Mienfoo brings back old memories of Jade is all. It's like I'm looking at a kindred spirit of her..."

Emdox looked back at the Mienfoo, reminiscing of days long ago. A melancholy gaze formed in his eyes.

When Emdox realized this, he shook his head and returned his expression back into its usual look.

"Sorry," Emdox said. "I just miss my dear friend is all. We would spend many hours with one another back then, whenever we got the chance in our busy schedules. I haven't seen her in a couple of months since she's out on that mission, and seeing your friend makes me remember that I haven't seen her. And with it, it makes me have a strange feeling of nostalgia. But, it's nothing to worry about. It happens to everyone."

Terron and Zekra weren't quite sure what to say. Just then, Emdox's expression seemed to brighten even more.

"Oh, your friend is coming to her senses!" Emdox then said, growing excited. "I can sense her conscious mind arising."

The two hurriedly went over to the bedside of the Mienfoo. Just as expected, the Mienfoo started to move around sluggishly in the bed before tiredly opening up her eyes. Terron and Zekra smiled in joy at seeing that she was okay and with them.

Once the Mienfoo fully awakened, she noticed the blankets covering her. She started to poke them, trying to understand what they might be.

"Good, you're awake," Emdox said pleasantly to the Mienfoo. "You might be wondering where you are right now. Well-"

Suddenly, the Xatu held up his wings in front of his face to protect himself. Before the children could ask what was going on, the Mienfoo pressed her paw into the wings of the Xatu and released the white energy that had been building within the paw.

_**CRASH!**_

Emdox was sent flying backwards into the wall. He didn't seem to be injured, but he still took a while in attempting to get up.

The Mienfoo immediately jumped out of the bed and landed behind Terron and Zekra. She then ran straight for the closed window.

"Wait, stop!" Zekra cried.

She pounced at the Mienfoo, landing on the fighting-type's back and bringing her to the ground. Terron was quick to help and proceeded with pinning her down as well.

"_MEEII! MEEII!" _the Mienfoo shrieked.

She started to squirm, which Terron and Zekra found they couldn't work against. They were tossed off the Mienfoo, landing on separate sides of the feral. With their weight now off, the Mienfoo once again got up and darted for the window.

Just before the Mienfoo burst through the glass, she immediately became frozen in midair. The Mienfoo attempted to move, but found her limbs were locked in place. She struggled and cried loudly, trying to become free.

Terron and Zekra got to their feet. They looked behind them to find Emdox's eyes were glowing a bright blue; he was using his telekinetic abilities to keep the fighting-type from escaping. He watched as the Mienfoo continued to scream, fighting off his influence on her.

"Yes… you and Jade truly are kindred spirits," Emdox said with a sigh. "I remember having to do this to her too…"

Emdox turned to the startled children.

"We need to take her outside," Emdox said to them. "She's terrified of me since I'm a stranger to her and she feels confined inside this room. Follow me."

"Wait, you can't just keep her like this!" Zekra cried. "It's not right to have her under your influence!"

"It's only temporary," Emdox assured. "Besides, it's the only way to get her out of the hospital safely. She could get injured from trying to break out the window. It's all that's on her mind right now. She doesn't understand the concept of a 'door', so she won't leave any other way."

Zekra let out a sigh of defeat, not liking how the Mienfoo was being handled. However, she saw that Emdox was right.

"It's still wrong though…" Zekra muttered. "Being paralyzed against your will…"

Reluctantly, Terron and Zekra followed the Xatu out of the room. The Xatu put a psychic bind on the Mienfoo's tongue so that she couldn't scream and controlled her limbs so that it gave the impression that she was walking normally amongst the inside of the hospital. This way, she wouldn't make a scene among the other patients and visitors. When the four got out of the giant tree, Emdox finally released his hold on her.

The Mienfoo fell to the ground, but was quick to get back to her feet. She looked around, panting heavily as she noticed the change of location that was so different from her home. She moved around in circles, looking in every direction she could.

"Is she going to be okay?" Terron asked. "She seemed so panicky back there."

"Yes, she'll be fine," Emdox said. "She just needs an open space. It feels more natural to her since it's like the wild; no boundaries to hold her back."

The three watched the Mienfoo continue to look around, slowly starting to calm down as a more intrigued expression formed. She went up to one of the trees and gently put her paws on its trunk. And then, she started to climb the tree. Her small claws provided good gripping as she slowly went up to the lowest branch of the tree. Once she had reached the branch, she sat down in it and looked toward Terron and Zekra.

She looked at them the same way she had back at Diamond Dust Mountain.

"So what are you going to do with her?" Emdox then asked. "She's done recovering and almost at full health again."

"Well, I'm not really sure," Terron replied. "I didn't really think about anything beyond getting the Mienfoo to the medical center. What do you think, Zekra?"

"Hmmm, she is pretty powerful," Zekra started to say. "I mean, we could take her back to the wild, but it looks like she's grown an interest in us and wouldn't want to leave us. So maybe we can make her a part of the team."

"Another member to our team, huh?" Terron said thoughtfully. "That would be nice, actually. It would make battles and missions easier to do, especially with her strength."

Terron brought his gaze to the Mienfoo.

"Hey, we have a question for you!" Terron called. "Can you come here for a moment?"

The Mienfoo recognized that she was being addressed and slowly started making her way off the tree. Terron watched as she came to the three, though she kept a distance from them since Emdox was there with the children. She stared at the Cubone curiously.

"Hey, do you want to join our team?" Terron asked the Mienfoo. "You don't have to, but we'd really like it if you would. We could use your company and power for our team."

The fighting-type showed visible signs of thinking, as if she understood what she was being asked. She looked at the ground has she pondered.

After some time had passed, the Mienfoo glanced back at the kids and seemed to smile. Understanding what she was trying to say, Terron and Zekra smiled as well. They went up to the Mienfoo and stood by her sides before looking back at Emdox.

"We'd like to make this Mienfoo the third member of Team Vendetta," Zekra said cheerfully. "We think she'll make a nice addition to the team."

"I think so too," Emdox replied. "I'll go register her under your team name. But before I do so, I need to know what name you wish to give her. We need to call her by something."

"Well Terron, you want to name her?" Zekra then asked the Cubone.

Terron was taken aback.

"Me?" he asked. "Why me?"

"Well, I gave the name of the team," Zekra explained, "so you should be given the opportunity to name something. Plus, it was your idea to save the Mienfoo. I think you should have the honor of naming her because of that."

"Well, if you say so," Terron replied. "Just give me a second to come up with one."

Terron thought for a moment, considering a good name for the Mienfoo. He needed a name that would suit this fighting-type. He needed a name that would fit a Pokémon who bravely fought to protect two strangers and risked her life in doing so. He needed a name that this Mienfoo could proudly wear.

After thinking for a minute, a name finally came to Terron.

"Her name's Impetus," the Cubone said. "That's what I think her name should be."

He looked up at the Mienfoo and watched as her smile seemed to grow. He wasn't really sure if the Mienfoo could understand what just happened, but he was glad she seemed to like the name.

"Impetus… such an interesting name," Emdox commented. "Based on what your memories tell me, I do think it's a fitting name. Well, from this day on, she will be called Impetus by all those her meet her. Now, we just need to mark her and then I'll go register her."

The Xatu cautiously made his way toward Impetus. She tensed up, her eyes becoming wide.

"Impetus… don't be difficult for me…" Emdox said gently. "I don't want to have to use my telekinetic powers on you again. Just stay still and let me enter your brain so I can put the mark on you…"

"_Mei!" _Impetus spat.

She immediately shoved her paw at the Xatu.

"Wait, Impetus!" Terron cried. "Stop!"

_**BOOM!**_

* * *

A few minutes later, Terron, Zekra, and Impetus were standing by themselves once more, taking a break from what had just happened. Impetus had attacked Emdox whenever he tried to come near her or try to connect with her mind, usually in the form of a Force Palm. Terron and Zekra tried to get her to stop, but she was dead set on not letting the Xatu get into her head. It finally ended when Emdox got tired of trying to coax her and used yet another psychic bind to hold her still. Once he had managed that, Emdox put the mark on her.

Now, Impetus stared at her left paw, which had the Mark of the Fellowship. It was a red color, being the same shade of the color as the other red colorings of her fur.

"Don't worry, Impetus," Zekra said. "You'll get used to it being there. It's not like it's going to prevent you from using your paw."

The Mienfoo didn't say much as she continued to stare at the symbol curiously. Terron looked at his own marked paw and observed the unchanged symbol.

"To think that we have to have these to be members," Terron said. "I kinda like them… but I wish we could have had a badge instead. It's weird thinking that they changed me so that I'm one of them…"

"Huh, you know, I never thought of it that way," Zekra replied. "I suppose they did 'change' us. But, it's not a huge change. I mean, we're still us. Our personalities are the same. I doubt that giving someone something that changes their appearance also changes their personality."

"I suppose you have a point," Terron shrugged. "I guess what's done is done. I just hope that in time, when we have to get our future members marked, they don't put up such a resistance like Impetus did."

Terron glared at the Mienfoo. She shrunk in shame.

As the three chatted, Terron noticed Garter climbing down a nearby tree. When the Ariados managed to reach the ground, he made his way toward the group, wearing a broad grin. Impetus, growing alert, went into a hostile pose. When Garter saw this, he stopped about ten feet away from the group.

"Ah, see your friend is okay," Garter stated. "I was wondering how she was doing. Haven't checked on her since last night."

"Yeah, Impetus is fine," Terron said. "She's a part of our team now."

"Really?" Garter asked. "How come she's joining you two?"

Terron then explained to Garter about the encounter they had with the Mienfoo, how she followed them, and how she saved their lives from the Weavile. Once Terron had finished telling the story up to the present, the Ariados nodded thoughtfully.

"So that's why you wanted to save her," Garter said. "I wondered why you wanted to do that. Not many Pokémon want to save a feral."

Garter paused for a moment.

"Anyway, I came to see you children for another reason," he said. "I was going to give you it last night, but all of you were in a critical condition and I figured it could wait. But, now that you're all better… I have something for you, Terron."

Garter then took an object that had been on his back and set it on the ground: it was present. It was wrapped up in various leaves, kept together by thick silk. It was a somewhat large gift. Terron stared at Garter oddly.

"What's this for?" Terron asked.

"To make up for kidnapping you two," the Ariados answered. "It's my form of an apology. Remember? I said I'd make it up to you somehow."

"But you've helped us out so much already," Terron said humbly. "First, by saving me when I fell off the tree, and then by brining Impetus to the medical center. You don't have to do this. I think it's overdoing it."

"I still feel you should get this present," Garter insisted. "I still feel terrible about what I did. This present was the only thing I could think of to relieve me of that guilt. So go on; take the gift. You'll like what's inside."

Terron let out a sigh as he approached the Ariados and stopped in front of the present. He observed the wrapping curiously, finding it to be an odd contrast to the wrapping paper of his human life. He carefully ripped apart the leaves.

When the leaves were torn away, Terron found what was meant to be the gift.

He almost didn't believe what he was looking at.

There, among the pile of leaves… was a skull. A skull fit for the head of a Cubone.

Terron cautiously picked up the skull in his hands, making sure it was real. He realized very quickly that the helmet was indeed, very real. He could feel the fine bone and the various cracks that went throughout the skull. It was not a perfect helmet, but Terron didn't mind that.

It felt so nice to have a helmet in his hands.

He felt a happiness he couldn't begin to describe. He thought he would cry.

"Heh, I see you like it," Garter said with a chuckle. "Thought you would. It's a Deino skull. It was tampered with in order to make it work for you, such as giving it some eye holes since Deino don't have eyes, but it's in usable condition. I had it special ordered from the Dusk Mines Fellowship since they like to keep all of their executed criminals' bones and other valuable body parts in a storage center or something like that. It just so happened that when I asked for a helmet fit for a Cubone, they had that one. A dragon's skull is considered very valuable to bone-users like yourself, so I think I lucked out in getting it."

Terron couldn't say anything. He might have been disturbed by how the Dusk Mines Fellowship stored corpses for some reason, but he was too filled with glee to think about that.

"Well congratulations, Terron!" Zekra said with a grin. "You finally got your helmet! And it didn't take you a month! Now put it on so you can stop complaining that you feel weird without it!"

Terron nodded as he took a few steps back. He looked at Garter and his teammates before smiling. He looked back at his helmet and, with a deep breath, placed it on his head.

The helmet sat comfortably on his head, fitting him quite well despite it once belonging to a very different Pokémon. He could see clearly out of the artificial eyeholes, just as he had without the helmet. His ears, though being pushed down, could still hear everything around him. He could breathe without any troubles.

Terron felt a peace of mind overcome him.

He felt whole now.

_**Terron…**_

The Cubone heard a familiar voice. It was coming from inside his mind.

_**Terron…**_

_That voice… It's…_

Before Terron could finish his thought, his body collapsed, hitting the ground as his vision cut to black.

* * *

When Terron awoke, he found himself still lying on the ground. He got back to his feet, expecting to find himself still in front of the Fellowship with everyone surrounding him. Instead, he found himself in a completely new location.

The Cubone was standing upon charred ground. He was on a small space of land, completely surrounded by molten lava. The fiery substance flowed all around him, bubbling and hissing. Just in front of him, beyond the endless lava, was an enormous volcano. Magma streamed out of the peak continuously, adding to the rivers of heat around Terron.

_What… what is this place? _Terron thought. _And where is everybody? How did I get here?_

Terron looked around, trying to find a way off his tiny island. However, he saw none. He was in the very middle of a pool of lava.

_That voice I heard before I came here… I know that voice. It's the same voice as the one I heard back when I was in Wayward Woods with Zekra. Yeah… the voice that helped me. And… now that I think about it… I'm sure this is also the same voice I heard after I got kicked out of that jungle dungeon. They're the same voice. But, who is it that's speaking to me? Who is the voice?_

"_**Terron… you are here once more…"**_

Terron turned toward the source of the voice, which came in the direction of the volcano. But, no one was in sight.

"Where are you?!" Terron demanded.

The Cubone gasped when he realized he could talk. His tongue was actually producing words, unlike the last time he had been transported to an unknown location.

"_**I told you never to return… yet you come despite this. Why did you return?"**_

"I didn't return here on purpose!" Terron answered. "I don't even know where _here _is!"

"_**Still, you came back. I had hoped you would never return."**_

Terron frowned. He started to remember his last experience with this voice.

"Alright, I'm going to try asking this again since you didn't answer this last time," Terron said seriously. "Who are you? What is this place? And why shouldn't I come here?"

There was silence.

"Answer me!" Terron cried. "Answer for me once!"

_**HIISSSSSSSS…**_

A large amount of bubbles surfaced in the lava in front of Terron. The Cubone backed away from the sight as far as he could.

"_**You should never come here… for your time will steadily cease."**_

Four massive claws started to immerge from the magma pool. Terron's eyes grew wide with horror. The claws were twice his size.

"_**This place… is my home where no Pokémon should dwell."**_

The claws moved toward the small patch of land, dripping with lava.

"_**And last of your requests…"**_

The claws settled on the ground before Terron. The Cubone tried to get away, but he had nowhere to go. He started to hyperventilate.

"_**I **_**am**_** you."**_

"Wha… What?!" Terron asked in disbelief. "What do you mean?! I-I don't understand what you're saying! Your answers don't make sense!"

"_**Your initial questions have been answered. You no longer have a reason to be here. Now, leave! Never come back!"**_

The claws slowly reached for Terron. As they did, Terron felt his vision blur. Before he understood what was happening, he fell backwards into the lava, his consciousness having drifted away.

* * *

Terron awoke in a fright, panting heavily. He found the three Pokémon staring down at him from where he lay on the ground. Impetus was rather distant from Zekra and Garter, but she still seemed just as concerned.

"What happened to me?" Terron asked as he got to his feet.

"You passed out," Zekra answered. "You were just lying there after you put on your helmet. We tried to get you up, but nothing really worked. Everything okay?"

Terron put his hands on his head, trying to shake the strange experience out of his mind. He couldn't talk about what he had just seen. At least, not now. Maybe later when he, Zekra, and Impetus were alone he'd try.

"Yeah, everything's fine," Terron said calmly. "I was just so excited that I fainted from happiness. I didn't think such a thing could actually happen. Hahaha…"

Zekra and Garter gave Terron an odd look before giving him his space.

"Thanks though, for the helmet," Terron said to Garter with a smile. "I'm really glad to have it. Been looking for this thing everywhere. Now I can just focus on getting a better weapon…"

"You're welcome," Garter replied. "Glad you liked it. Take good care of it. I'll see you children around."

Garter then took the leaves that had wrapped up the gift and went back to his usual spot among the trees. Zekra waved goodbye to Garter until he was out of sight. She then looked at Terron pleasantly.

"So, looks like we're getting a lot of good things on our day off," Zekra said happily. "First Impetus, and now your helmet. What more things can we get?"

"Lots of money?" Terron suggested.

"Heh, yeah I wish," Zekra said with a laugh.

She then looked out toward the outer parts of the city, where the city borders could be seen. She stared at it for a while, seemingly thinking about something. Impetus went to a Fellowship tree and found a good branch to rest in.

Now that Terron had some time to think, he pondered in what he should say to Zekra about what had happened with the voice. He wasn't quite sure how to even begin the subject. The topic was so strange and bizarre, that he doubted there was any easy way to talk about it. He wasn't even sure he _wanted _to talk about it.

_I don't have to tell her about this… _Terron considered. _I mean… it's not that big of a deal, is it? I mean, sure, it's giving me cryptic messages that I don't understand… but it's not affecting my reality. The only time it did was when it was yelling me, telling me how to fight. Since then… it's been stuck in my head. It's not helping me or causing problems. Well, except sucking me into strange places, but that's not very often. So, maybe I can keep this a secret. Maybe I should just figure this out on my own._

Terron glanced at Zekra.

_I know she and I share all of our secrets… but this is one I need to keep. She'll worry about me. I don't want her worrying over something as weird as this. She's got enough things on her mind._

"Hey, Terron."

Terron brought himself back to reality to find Zekra sitting in front of him. She was looking at him with a somewhat reluctant expression.

"Yeah, what is it?" Terron asked.

"I was wondering… if I could go somewhere today," she said shyly. "I've been thinking about it since yesterday, and since we have the day off, I thought today would be a good day to go."

"Okay, well where do you want to go?" Terron asked.

Zekra rubbed her paw into the ground.

"My old home," she answered quietly. "There's… something I need to do there. By myself."

Terron stared at Zekra oddly, not quite sure what she could possibly need to do in Blackoak Town. Everybody who lived there was dead… so surely no one was there. Yet, Terron could see that Zekra was serious about going. He wasn't sure about letting her go, though. He worried something might happen to her while she was gone. He would have asked to go with her, but Terron could tell that she only wanted to go alone.

In the middle of Terron's deciding, he started to remember how he wanted to make it up to Zekra for making her collapse the other day. Perhaps, letting her go on her journey, alone, would work for a good apology. He didn't like the idea, but Terron wanted to keep her happy.

"Do you know how long you think you'll be gone?" Terron asked.

"Just until evening," Zekra said. "I was gonna get there by Drifblim, so it shouldn't take long."

"Well, alright then," Terron said with a small smile. "Just, be careful, alright?"

Zekra smiled and pressed her head against Terron's side.

"I will," Zekra replied. "Thanks. I hope you and Impetus enjoy your day off too. I'm sure she'll listen to you even though I'm gone."

Zekra then removed her head from the Cubone and started to walk away. Terron waved goodbye to his friend as she slowly faded into the distance.

Once she was gone, Terron stood by himself, with his only other friend taking a nap in the trees nearby.


	17. Chapter 16: Different Worlds

**Chapter 16**

**Different Worlds**

* * *

Terron sat at the base of the tree that Impetus was napping in. He wasn't quite sure how much time had passed since Zekra left. But, he could tell that he'd have to continue to wait. For a long time, that was. She wouldn't return for at least four more hours.

The Cubone wasn't sure what to do with the rest of his time. He couldn't go to the gym, for he still didn't have the proper club. He didn't want to go train in the Gray Lands either since it wouldn't feel the same without Zekra there. Terron had Impetus, but he didn't quite feel he shared a connection with the Mienfoo as he shared with Zekra.

Terron looked up at his companion to find she was still napping. She must have still been tired, or perhaps she was very bored. Terron wanted to say he was becoming bored as well, but he knew that the feeling growing inside him was not monotony. No, he knew that this feeling was lonesomeness.

He had been fighting it off, but it was getting worse as time passed.

Terron _hated_ the way it made him feel. The further the loneliness spread into his heart, the more it gave birth to a terrible kind of bitterness he did not want to feel. Soon, Terron decided that he didn't want to put up with the feeling anymore. He needed to get something else on his mind.

He got to his feet.

"Impetus," Terron called in a low voice.

The Mienfoo opened her eyes and glanced down at the Cubone.

"We should go visit Len," Terron said. "He wanted to talk to me about something, so we might as well go do that. So, come on down and I'll show you the inside of the base when we go visit Len."

Impetus jumped off the tree branch and landed besides Terron. He stared at her for a moment, wondering to himself how she didn't break her legs from falling at such a height. Once he realized that he couldn't find an answer, he headed into the base with Impetus.

As the two went inside, the Mienfoo actively glanced around, turning in every direction she could. She didn't seem to be in a panic due to the inside of the tree having much less confinement than a room, but the Mienfoo still appeared confused by the walls. She went up to the nearest wall and tapped her paws against it before dashing over to the other wall of the tree and doing the same thing. Thankfully, hardly anyone was in the base, so she didn't bother anyone with her strange behavior.

Terron watched her repeatedly go back and forth between the two ends of the tree.

After five minutes, Impetus finally stopped investigating the sides of the tree and came back to Terron. She still had a puzzled expression, but she wasn't fretting over what was bothering her at least. Terron then headed for the stairs. He had only made it up three steps when he realized that Impetus wasn't following him.

Terron looked behind him to find the Mienfoo was staring at the stairs oddly. The design was very strange to her since the wild didn't have anything remotely similar to stairs. Terron went back down to her side. She stared at him.

"You just step onto the little steps," Terron explained as he went up a couple of steps. "Like what I just did. It's pretty simple."

The Mienfoo looked back at the steps and carefully put her foot on the first step. Then, she took the next step. Her climb was slow, but she seemed to understand the concept. Terron smiled as he made his way further up the stairs, making sure he didn't walk too fast.

When he got to the floor of the office, he found that Impetus was walking up the stairs on all fours now. Terron was about to correct her, but then he realized that she was probably doing this so that she had an easier time climbing. After all, she seemed to be walking at a faster pace. So, he decided he'd let her climb that way for now.

Once Impetus made it up the stairs, she stood back into her normal position. She and Terron then headed for the office. When they got there, Terron knocked on the door with his bone club.

"Yes, you can come in," Len's voice said from behind it.

Terron pushed the door open and walked inside. Impetus remained outside the room, marveling at the thought of a "wall" opening into a room.

"Come on, Impetus," Terron said.

The Mienfoo continued to stand there, staring at the door that was ajar. Terron went back out and reached to grab her paw. Immediately, Impetus snapped her paw away from the Cubone and readied the white energy in that paw. Terron hastily went back into the room. He'd just let her stay out there. He wasn't going to risk a Force Palm to his face.

Terron felt strange coming back into this room. It was the same as he had remembered it, only with more light, back when Garter kidnapped him and Zekra. Back then, they were in a very different position in life. It was funny to Terron how so much could change so quickly.

Sitting at the desk was Len, paperwork scattered around him. When he saw Terron come in, he gave the Cubone an odd stare.

"Terron?" the Luxray asked. "Is that you?"

"Yeah, it is," the Cubone replied.

"Sorry, I didn't recognize you," Len said. "I'm used to seeing you without a skull. But, now that you have one, you almost look like a completely different Pokémon. Still, I'm glad you got a helmet. It fits you well."

"Thanks," Terron said. "So, you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yes, I did," Len started to say before he noticed something else. "But, where's Zekra and that new feral recruit of yours?"

"Oh, Zekra went to go visit somewhere for the day," Terron answered. "And Impetus is outside of the room since she doesn't seem to want to come inside."

Terron pointed to the door, showing Len the Mienfoo. She was slowly opening and closing the door, completely fascinated. She was so occupied with the door, she didn't notice Terron and Len staring at her. Terron smiled and let out a quiet laugh.

"So, you're probably wondering why I wanted to talk to you," Len said as he brought his attention back to the Cubone. "Well, there are two reasons, and both of them regard asking you questions about something."

"What would those things be?" Terron asked.

"One of them regards your encounter with a strange Weavile," Len answered. "Emdox mentioned that he saw a Weavile attacking you yesterday in your memories, and I wanted to know more about that. Emdox could always tell me more, but I figured it's best to hear it from the one who was actually there during the event. It's alarming to think that someone attacked your team for seemingly no reason, but perhaps I can help you find a reason for the Weavile's actions. Then, we could try to prevent this from happening again. So, tell me what you remember of the experience, if you may do so."

Terron nodded.

"Zekra and I were somewhere on Diamond Dust Mountain when we met the Weavile," Terron began. "We were there to look for some bones. When we saw the Weavile, he was this Aggron corpse and was trying to rip off the armor on it for some reason. When he noticed us, he said something about needing to kill us since we knew he was there. He mentioned the Fellowship and others, but he didn't really say anything about them. I don't even know who these 'others' are. I still haven't figured it out. What do you think he means?"

"I'm not sure myself," Len replied. "These others do sound interesting, but, do go on with your story."

"After that, the Weavile tried to kill us," Terron continued. "We almost died, but Impetus saved us and she ended up fighting the Weavile. Nothing really strange happened after that, except that the Weavile was oddly obsessed with this scarf he had. Like, when I accidentally tore it off him, he started going crazy and demanding his scarf back. He was so obsessed with it, that when I threw it off a cliff, he went after it. He just jumped off the mountain to grab it. I don't get why anyone would be so worried about a scarf."

"Did the scarf look special?" Len asked curiously.

"No, it was just a normal scarf," Terron replied. "It was just red and torn. I didn't feel any different when I had it in my hand."

"Hmmm, I see," Len said thoughtfully. "And you never saw the Weavile again?"

"No, thankfully," Terron said. "I hope I never have to see him again. I don't want to have to fight him again."

"The Fellowship will make sure that doesn't happen," Len assured. "We'll be putting up a few notices, saying to be on the lookout for him and capture him if we can. Then, we can figure out what he was up to and why he attacked you. You'll be alright."

Terron smiled at hearing this. It was nice to know that the Fellowship cared about him. Even if they were rather disturbing at times, perhaps it was made up for in how they treated their members. Maybe Zekra was right about the Fellowship's positives outweighing their negatives.

"Now, for my other reason I wanted to talk to you," Len then said. "I want to know about your old world. The human world."

There was a long pause between the two of them.

"No one's seen a human in such a long time," the Luxray went on after a moment. "So long, in fact, that almost everyone thinks they're not real anymore. But now… we have a human here, in a Pokémon's body. I'm fairly certain that this hasn't happened before."

Len stared at Terron curiously.

"I might have thought you were insane if _you_ told me you were a human, but when Emdox read your mind, he saw that there wasn't a trace of insanity within you," Len continued. "So, I think it's safe to say that you really are a human. So tell me, human… what do you remember about you being human? I know you have amnesia, but surely some parts of your memory must still be intact."

"How come you want to know?" Terron asked.

"I was always told stories of humans for as long as I can remember," Len said. "Specifically, it was the leaders back at the Pledge Mountain Fellowship who told me stories of humans, back in the days when I wasn't a leader myself. The legends always fascinated me. But, I never had any way to know if they were true. So, now that you're here, maybe I can shed some light on those legends and separate the truth from the false."

Terron thought for a moment. He wasn't really sure if he wanted to talk about this. He felt uneasy talking about his old life that he could vaguely remember. Besides, he never wanted anyone to know he was human. He wanted to keep that a secret with Zekra. But, Terron realized that he was speaking to the Fellowship leader and that he should do as requested. Maybe it would help him learn more about his past, somehow.

He let out a sigh.

"I don't remember my life too well," Terron began. "I can't remember anything specifically about me. I can just remember concepts in my world. Like, I do remember that people in my world know what Pokémon are. I don't think we have Pokémon in our world… but we know what they are. Some of us know more about them than others, though. I know that I understand Pokémon mostly, but I don't understand how some of your types of Pokémon are more effective against others. I know there's a way to memorize it, but I never did. I know most of your species' names, but not your type advantages. Perhaps… as a human… I never found that to be important. But, then again, why would everyone know about Pokémon if they don't exist in my world?"

"Perhaps like us, you humans turned Pokémon into legends," Len suggested. "Do you know why humans left Pokémon though? That might have been part of your legends since there's a possibility that the humans in your world are the ones that left us Pokémon long ago in the legends."

"No, I don't," Terron replied. "I don't remember there ever being a story about humans leaving Pokémon, but maybe it's just that I was never told it. I think you're right about the humans from my world being the humans who once lived with Pokémon in Pokémon legends, but I don't have any proof of that."

"Is there anything you remember about yourself prior to becoming a Cubone?" Len asked. "Do you remember your last days as a human?"

Terron searched his memories for a few minutes. The two remained silent during this time.

"I don't," Terron said with a sigh. "Like I said, I don't know anything about myself. I just remember human things, not my own life. I can't even remember what I looked like."

Len stared at Terron with an unreadable expression. Terron thought he would feel nervous with the look the Luxray was giving him, as he had felt in the past, but he didn't feel that way now.

"Do you remember the name of your world and what it looked like?" Len asked after a while.

"The world I lived in…" Terron replied slowly. "Its name… Its name was…"

Terron's eyes seemed to go into a trance as a certain word entered into his head. Upon having this word enter his mind, several mental images of his world surfaced from the closed-off depths of his brain.

"My world's name is Kuron," Terron answered. "It… It's like this world, but less nature and more buildings. There's only one region on my planet, though we have quite a few small islands scattered throughout the ocean. We sometimes call these islands mini regions since they're quite large sometimes, but they're not nearly as big as the main land. The main region itself is called Kuron, but since Kuron is the only mainland, we just call the planet Kuron."

"So, it's just like Shiron then," Len said. "We only have one giant continent and some islands throughout the planet. And, we call the world Shiron for the same reason you call yours Kuron. The human world… and the Pokémon world… they have the exact same world layout."

Terron and Len glanced at one another. They weren't sure what to think of this revelation. Several possibilities could arise from this new information.

"One last question before I let you go," Len then said as his voice became very grim. "Were there any Plagued Ones in your world or legends?"

Terron thought for a moment. He tried to find any memories connected to those words.

"No, there weren't," he answered. "At least, none that I remember. I'm pretty sure I would have remembered those creatures."

Len stared at Terron with a strange expression. Eventually, he reverted back to his normal, bland stare.

"Thank you, Terron," Len said. "I'm done questioning you. Your answers were very interesting."

"Do they help you at all?" the Cubone asked.

"They provide theories, but there's no concrete evidence for such theories," the Luxray answered. "It's too vague. But, if you remember more, feel free to tell me so that we can piece together this strange mystery. I'm sorry if my questions bothered you and reminded you of your condition. But, don't let this amnesia get to you. I know how it feels. I too, have it."

Terron gave Len an odd look.

"_You_ have amnesia too?" Terron asked.

"Sadly, yes," Len said with a sigh. "But, it's not as severe as yours. You see, I can remember most of my life and who I am. But, there is one part of my memory that's completely erased from my mind: my childhood."

"What do you mean by that?" Terron asked curiously.

"I don't remember what my life as a cub," Len explained. "My earliest memory in life was when Éclair found me wandering Shiron as a Luxio and asked if I wanted to join the Fellowship with her. I've never figured out why I was roaming the land. I just know that I was since Éclair said that's what I told her. I had told her I had nowhere to go and simply went wherever I could. I don't know where I was from or who my parents were. All I know is that when Éclair explained what the Fellowship was, I had a strong desire to join. To this day, I still don't know why that was, but I try not to let that bother me too much. I try to live my life in the present, even if I occasionally try to find my memories."

Terron continued to stare at Len. He had never expected Len of all Pokémon to have amnesia. He didn't expect _anyone_, in all honesty, to have amnesia. Knowing this now, Terron felt slightly better about his condition. He wasn't alone after all. Even if the severity of the memory loss was different, at least someone else had it.

"Well, thanks for telling me that," Terron said. "And, thanks for trying to help me. I'll see you later, sometime."

Len gave his goodbye as the Cubone left the office and closed the door behind him. Impetus was standing outside the doorway, waiting for Terron to return.

"Well, I'm all finished," Terron said to her. "Len talked to me about my amnesia… and apparently he has amnesia too. It's strange, but it makes me feel kinda better about my own amnesia. I don't have to suffer, thinking I'm alone."

Impetus stared at Terron curiously, attempting to understand what he was talking about. Terron looked at her.

"I know you probably won't get it, but I might as well explain this to you since I'll need to in the future," Terron said. "I'm human. I don't know if you know what that is, but I'm from another world. I don't belong here."

Impetus didn't have any sort of reaction. She kept staring at Terron with that curious glance. As she did this, the Cubone started to realize something.

"You know… you're just like me in a way," Terron remarked thoughtfully. "We're both from different 'worlds'. I mean, your world is still in Shiron, but it's a completely different place compared to here. It's so different… it might as well be a distant world like Kuron. I remember when I first came to this world… I wondered how Pokémon could talk. I always had a strange belief that they couldn't for some reason. And now that I think about it, I bet that's what you're wondering too. Wild Pokémon don't talk like Zekra and I, so I guess this must be brand new to you."

Terron was quiet for a moment.

"Impetus, why did you leave your world?" Terron asked her. "This world is so strange… yet you stay here. Why?"

Impetus seemed to understand the question, but she didn't react to it other than pondering for a second. Once she had done that, she continued staring at Terron.

"I wish I could answer that question for myself. I wonder why I had to leave my world sometimes," Terron then said before looking toward the stairs. "Let's just go get some late lunch."

The two went down the staircase and headed for the mess hall. Once they got there, Terron showed Impetus how they ordered meals and could instantly get food as opposed to hunting for it. He tried to get her some steak, but Impetus refused to eat it since she didn't understand that the steak was food. He'd try to shove pieces into her mouth so she could taste the flesh, but she wouldn't do it.

He ended up having to take a bite out of the steak to prove it was edible. He thought he would feel sick as he ate the flesh of a dead Pokémon, but surprisingly, it wasn't so bad for him. He didn't get the craving to eat meat for the rest of his life after doing this, but he found the meal to be decent. Once he had done that, Impetus finally tried the steak and started to eat it. As she ate her meal, he had a bowl full of berries.

Once the two had finished, Terron and Impetus left the base and headed for the gym. Even though Terron had no plans of working with Tunra for the day, he figured he could show Impetus around and perhaps get her a trainer to further improve her own abilities.

When the two went inside, Impetus once again noticed the walls enclosing them. This time, though, she looked back and forth at them as if to see if they were closing in on the two.

"Don't worry," Terron said. "There's plenty of room. There's no doors either to the chambers, and there's much more space in the chambers."

Terron went up to the fighting-type chamber. It had the simple symbol of a fist overhead. He pointed to that symbol, catching Impetus' attention.

"That's a place where you can train," Terron said. "I think you'd like it. You can get stronger and learn more abilities. I know you're pretty powerful, but you can be even better if you train with the master here. What do you think of that?"

Impetus looked down the dark tunnel for a second before wandering into it. Terron followed after her. When the two entered into the chamber, Terron saw it was quite different than the ground-type chamber. Rather than being a simple and open space, this chamber had a stone platform in the very middle. It was only about a foot tall though, and Terron could see various cracks running throughout the grey rock. Scattered around the room were a few small trees that managed to grow thanks to the sunlight pouring in from above.

There was no statue within the room.

A Lucario stood in the middle of the stone platform and was glancing at Terron and Zekra. There was no emotion in his eyes.

"I heard you coming inside," the Lucario spoke to Terron. "I assume the Mienfoo wishes to train with me while you simply observe?"

"Yeah, that's pretty much it," Terron said simply. "Can you do that? I mean, Impetus is pretty talented, but she could use some more skills. All she really knows how to do are the Force Palm and Swift abilities, though she seems pretty good at martial arts."

"Very well, let me see what I can do," the Lucario said as he looked over at Impetus. "Come, young Mienfoo. Come here so I may understand your current abilities."

Impetus glanced over at Terron, unsure about what to do. She still wasn't on board with the idea of confronting random strangers. Terron then climbed onto the stage, trying to get her to follow him. Cautiously, Impetus did so. The Lucario, upon seeing that she was ready, started to build a blue sphere of energy in his between his paws.

The Mienfoo's eyes became wide.

"Now then," the Lucario said. "Let's see how well you can dodge-"

"_MEI!"_

Impetus suddenly shot forward, slamming her foot into the Lucario. She knocked the trainer to the ground before pressing her paw into the Lucario's face. But before she could release the white power, the Lucario threw the Mienfoo off him and swiftly got to his feet. He glared sharply at the Mienfoo as she skidded to a stop, digging her paw into the ground so it would slow down her momentum.

The Lucario noticed the small claws that were in her paws.

His glare only seemed to intensify.

"No civilized Mienfoo would have those claws," the Lucario growled. "They always clip them since they think using claws as a weapon is a dirty tactic. Which means… that you're a _wild_."

The Mienfoo came to a halt and immediately made her way toward the Lucario once more. Her eyes were filled with hostility. The friendly Impetus Terron had been with was no longer there. She was now the wild Impetus who Terron had seen when she was fighting the Lairon.

Impetus sprang at the trainer, her claws ready to slice into the Lucario.

"You have no strategy," the Lucario said with a huff. "You can't hurt me. You listen to instincts only. You always have, and you will always will. _That_ ensures that you can't win against me."

The Lucario formed a familiar violet sphere in in his paws. Once it had reached a moderate size, he released the energy from within the sphere. It came out as black rings sparking with ominous energy. Impetus's eyes grew in horror once she released what was being sent at her. She tried to jump over the attack.

She wasn't able to avoid the pulse, and it struck her.

"_**MEEIII!"**_

Impetus fell to the ground seconds later, gasping as she attempted to get back up. Before she could, the Lucario stamped his foot on her back and kept her pinned down. He looked over at Terron with disgust.

"I refuse to train your 'friend'," the Lucario said. "Never come back to my chamber with her."

"But, why?!" Terron cried. "I mean, I know she attacked you unexpectedly, but she was just surprised is all. I'm trying to get her to stop doing that."

"This Mienfoo is a wild," the Lucario said venomously. "It's in her nature to do that. She won't ever stop being that way. Wilds are creatures who will never be like us. It's useless to train her when she will never change. She can't learn anything. All she knows is how to kill without strategy. She's an unintelligent, filthy excuse for a Pokémon. I don't know why you even want her in your company."

The Lucario took his foot off the Mienfoo and kicked her over to Terron. The Cubone managed to grab Impetus and helped her to her feet. She seemed incredibly disoriented, as she had with the Weavile when he used a Dark Pulse on her.

"But Impetus isn't like that!" Terron stated defensively. "She's smart! She can understand everyone! She can learn if you teach her!"

The Lucario gritted his teeth.

"Get that wild out of here," the Lucario said with a growl. "I don't want to see her here again."

Terron was about to retort, but the Lucario gave him an icy glare. A blue sphere started to form in one of his paws. The Cubone understood the message that was being given to him. He let out a huff as he helped Impetus out of the chamber, where she didn't bother attacking him since she was temporarily in a confused state.

Terron was fuming with repulsion at the Lucario's attitude. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. None of that was true. Impetus _was_ a smart Pokémon, even if she was a wild.

When he exited the hallway and came back to the main room, he found Novus standing outside his own chamber. The Quilava glanced over at Terron before approaching him. He stopped in front of the Cubone and looked at Impetus for a moment. There was a pensive look in his eyes.

"You attempted to have Rey to teach this feral, didn't you?" Novus asked.

Terron nodded, too caught up in his emotions to say something. Novus looked back at his training chamber. He started to walk away.

"Come with me," the Quilava said.

The Cubone quietly followed Novus into his chamber with Impetus. The fire chamber had a bit more to it than the ground and fighting chambers. For one, there were blazing fires all throughout the room. They burned in small pits, providing the light of the room since there was no sunlight. Plastered along the walls were various paintings, all of them having a theme of legendries being together. One painting held Zapdos, Articuno, and Moltres circling one another in the sky. Another was of Raikou, Entei, and Suicune glancing skyward toward their creator, Ho-oh, with great respect. Every single legendary that had a connection with others was on at least one of the paintings.

At the very end of the room, there stood a tall statue of some Pokémon, just as Tunra had. This one, however, was not Groudon. It seemed to be an angelic, dragon-like Pokémon. Its entire body was a beautiful white shade, except for the eyes. Its eyes were a deep blue, which seemed so life-like and serene.

The sight of the room made Terron's anger slowly disappear.

"I thought to bring you here so that we may speak in private," Novus said. "What are your thoughts on my chamber?"

"It's really nice," Terron said. "I like the decorations. But, who's this Pokémon that you have a statue of? I don't recognize it."

Novus let out a bitter laugh.

"I shouldn't be surprised that you don't know Reshiram," Novus answered. "Many Pokémon no longer believe in his existence. They think he is a false deity, and tell their children that he doesn't exist. Then, those children pass onto their children that false truth, and they forget of Reshiram. They forget that he is one of the great dragons who guarded the land. They forget of his immense flames that could burn the world if he willed it. They forget that his flames are stronger than those of other fire gods, such as Ho-oh. They forget that he is the true figure to look to if you wish to find guidance in your fire. And with forgetting Reshiram, they forget Zekrom, great electric dragon of equal importance…"

Novus shut his eyes and let out a breath of fire as he sighed. Once he calmed down, he looked back at Terron.

"Sorry, I apologize for my outburst," the Quilava said. "It just ails me that the great dragons are being forgotten. Great beings should not be left to decay in the forgotten sands of time. But, that's not what needs to be focused on. No, we're here because I wanted to talk to you about your feral friend. I'm going to give you advice as to how you can help her since she will, no doubt, be staying in civilization with you and Zekra. It will help make her life easier."

The fire trainer looked upon the Mienfoo, finding that she was slowly coming back from her confused state.

"As I'm sure you've discovered, Rey is not fond of feral Pokémon," Novus said. "Unfortunately, so are many other Pokémon in this world. They see feral ones as demons who lack emotions and only live by how their instincts instruct them. In a way, I agree with that perspective, but it's only to a certain degree. Feral Pokémon are only like that when they are in the wild. Once they have been brought into society, they can become just like us. Their minds become open to our ways and sometimes, they will become like any ordinary civilian. Yet, no one else seems to understand this concept and believe feral ones will remain in their feral state for the rest of their lives. I know there are other Pokémon that probably understand how feral ones truly are, but the rest of the world doesn't quite believe this to be so."

_Yeah… the Fellowship seems to understand. _Terron thought. _But, that's probably because they've got two wild Pokémon on their team technically. Even if King was self-aware in the first place, but just became wild…_

"So are you saying I need to change Impetus?" Terron asked. "I have to change her so that she's not a feral anymore pretty much?"

"Yes and no," Novus replied. "Yes, she needs to change from her feral state to properly live in this new world. She cannot stay in civilization as a feral. But, it is also no since _you_ cannot change her. That will ultimately be her choice. What you have to do is give her a reason to change and support her. You and Zekra need to help her understand why she must change from her old ways if she wants to stay in civilization."

"But that's not going to affect her too much, is it?" Terron asked. "I mean sure, she has a few quirks, but she's still a nice Pokémon. And… she has her own kind of intelligence that I haven't seen in anyone else. It's special. I don't want that to go away."

"You're not altering her personality," Novus assured. "No, altering Pokémon to become accepted by others isn't right. You're just helping her adapt to civilization. You're helping her understand that some laws she might have followed in the wild no longer apply here. You're also teaching her new concepts from here that she never had in the wild. She'll still be the same Impetus you know, except better suited for this kind of world. So, if you wish to help her stay in civilization, try to help her understand what she needs to do."

Terron looked at Impetus and found that she was no longer disoriented. She was glancing around at all the fires near her. She then wandered toward the fires, but didn't touch them since she seemed to know that it wasn't a good idea. Novus and Terron watched her.

As he did, Terron started to see the truth in Novus's words. Impetus had to learn how to be civilized if she wanted to stay with the team. If she didn't, other instances like what happened with Rey could happen again. It was the only way to have other Pokémon understand that she was a good Pokémon. She was kind now… but that meant nothing if others were blinded by the prejudice of her being a feral. Plus, Terron didn't want Impetus to be so confused about their world. She always looked at everything so curiously, but that was only because she didn't understand what it meant. He wanted to fix that.

"I'll help Impetus," Terron said with a nod. "Zekra and I… we'll do it together. We'll help her become civilized. Somehow. Thanks for your advice."

_Yeah… we'll help Impetus. _Terron thought. _If Team Valor could, then surely we can too. It shouldn't be so hard. Impetus is pretty smart. I'm sure she'll learn quickly._

"But, why are you helping me?" Terron then asked.

Novus smiled.

"Because I am a teacher," the Quilava answered. "I do what I can do best, and that is to share my knowledge with others."

Terron stared oddly at the Quilava.

_I don't think that's your real reason. _Terron thought. _Novus… what are you hiding? Why are you _really_ helping me and Zekra? What's going through your head right now?_

* * *

**Blackoak Town Outskirts**

Zekra was gently placed onto the ground by her Drifblim. She smiled at the ghost as she turned to address it.

"Thanks for taking me here," she said. "Can you stay here though? I kinda wanted to go into the city by myself."

"That's fine," the Drifblim replied. "I can wait. But, why do you want to go inside of this town? It seems so vacant."

Zekra looked at the ground as her smile faded.

"There's… there's just something I need to take care of here," Zekra answered. "I won't be gone long, though. I'll probably be back in an hour or two."

"If you say so," the Drifblim shrugged. "I'll be waiting."

Zekra gave a nod of understanding before turning to face the town that she once called home. Many trees surrounded the outskirts of the town, making it somewhat hard to see the actual town. But, that was going to change soon.

With a deep breath, Zekra went forward, heading into her lost home.

"Zev…" she said. "I have so much I need to tell you… I hope you're here."


	18. Chapter 17: Zekra's Lost Days

**Chapter 17**

**Zekra's Lost Days**

* * *

Blackoak Town had not changed much since Zekra had last seen it. It was still the same, somewhat small town Zekra had grown up in since she hatched. The homes and shops were in good condition. The many gardens still grew a fair amount of fruits. The grass stayed at a decent height.

Despite having only been gone for a few days, Zekra felt that she had been away for months. She had thought time would have taken its toll on the city and made everything decay. But, seeing how everything remained the same reminded Zekra that she truly hadn't been gone for a long time.

She looked around and beheld the sights of her beloved hometown, realizing just how small her town was when compared to Aurora Town.

Blackoak always had a small population for as long as Zekra could remember. At least, it was smaller than Aurora Town's population. She had always been told that there were only about four hundred citizens here. She considered that to be a large amount of Pokémon despite what she had been told, until she went to Aurora Town and saw the massive amounts of Pokémon that roamed the streets at all times. Here, there were times when Zekra could be wandering down the main square and no one would be around for a good five minutes.

After dwelling in this thought, Zekra made it to the main square of town. In the very middle of the square was a fountain. There weren't any devices to make the water shoot up, though. Instead, the water simply sat in the fountain, resting underneath the stone figures of a Milotic and a couple of Wartortle. Zekra stopped in front of the fountain and gave it a long stare.

* * *

_Zekra was standing in front of the very same statue. However, she was not alone this time. A Torchic was standing beside her. Beside them on the ground were two small coins which gleamed in the midday sun. No one else seemed to be around, but the sounds of others in the distance could be heard._

"_So, you going to throw your Poké into the fountain, or not?" the Torchic asked._

"_I don't really know," Zekra answered. "I mean, I could think of a lot of good uses for this money. We could buy some candy with this. I don't want to waste it on some stupid superstition that if we give the fountain money, we get a free wish."_

"_You just don't know how to believe, do you?" the Torchic asked with a sigh._

"_I can believe, Chi," Zekra scoffed. "It's just that this doesn't seem legit. If we really wanted to get a wish, we could just go find Jirachi. Wherever he is…"_

_Chi shook her head in disapproval before picking up one of the coins with her beak. She then tossed it into the fountain, watching the water's surface ripple as the coin sank to the bottom. Zekra watched as her friend closed her eyes and mouthed out her wish._

"_What did you wish for?" Zekra asked curiously._

_Chi smiled._

"_I can't tell you that," the Torchic replied. "Otherwise, it won't come true."_

"_That's lame!" Zekra cried. "Ugh, whatever. I'll just try this coin wishing thing and see how it goes."_

_Zekra then took her coin and flung it at the Wartortle. It bounced off its stone face before plopping into the water. Zekra was quiet for a moment as she thought of what she wanted._

"_There, made my wish," Zekra said. _

"_Alright, cool," Chi said with a smile. "See? Trying wasn't so bad. Now let's go to my house and get some of that pie my mom made yesterday. Hopefully, there's still some left."_

_Chi started to walk away. As she did, Zekra peered at her reflection in the water. She could see all of the coins at the bottom, surrounding her mirror image. There were so many. There had to be at least one thousand Poké in this fountain. Yet, she didn't pay attention to all the money she could steal out of the fountain. Instead, she continued to look at the reflection._

_But, it was no longer her reflection. It was a Zoroark reflection. _

"_I wish you'd come back… you never came when I wanted you to come the most. So please… come back."_

* * *

Zekra let out a sigh. She walked past the fountain and went to find a particular place she knew in this town. She went past the many shops, seeing how all of the doors were wide open. Many of the windows were shattered. Zekra gave a melancholy frown when she saw this. Her town was already being broken into and robbed of its supplies.

Eventually, Zekra came across a certain store. Just like all of the other stores, this one had been sapped of its possessions. But, this one had special meaning to Zekra. She wanted to walk past it, but her curiosity overcame her. Zekra cautiously approached the abandoned building and crept inside through the open door.

This store was, or at least used to be, a bookstore. It still held traces of evidence that this still was a bookstore. There were books that still lined up on shelves with their price tags still attached. The little café inside was still intact, even if it was missing all of its food items that were on display. The advertising banners strung from the ceiling were still there.

Still, the place was a mess. Most of the floor was littered with books and torn out pages. Shelves were knocked over on their sides. The cushions to provide seats for readers were torn apart.

Zekra walked through the abandoned store until she noticed something. She came across an atlas, which was opened to show a drawing of the entire world. The illustration took up both pages, filling them with its detailed coloring. Most of the pages were simply the land of Shiron, accompanied by a number of small islands and the ocean surrounding the lands.

Zekra stopped and glanced at the drawing.

* * *

"_I never realized just how big Shiron really was," a Buizel said as he looked at the world map. "It says here that the main land covers roughly twenty million square miles. All the islands nearby don't even come close to that! They're a million miles at best! I guess there really is a good reason for why we call our world the same name as the region."_

"_Yeah, guess so," Zekra replied. "And how'd you find this book? You're always reading comics whenever we come here, so I don't know how you would have found this."_

"_Someone just misplaced it I guess," the Buizel shrugged. "It was next to this comic I was going to read. It's really nice, though. I've never seen a map before. I didn't know our world could be so big."_

"_Well, let's look at this some more where it's more comfortable to sit, Fen," Zekra then said._

_Fen nodded as he picked up the book from off the ground and the two exited the comic section where the Buizel had found the book. They then headed for an area where some cushions were before sitting down in them and placing the book in front of them._

_The Buizel started to turn the pages. He stopped when they came to a page that held a section of Shiron with their city as a small dot. It was so insignificant compared to the other locations around that particular part of Shiron._

"_Huh, we have a lot of towns around us," Zekra commented. "I never realized that. Of course, that's probably because neither of us have left here. We've been stuck here since we hatched."_

"_I don't mind that, though," Fen said. "This place is a nice place to be. And, you seem to like here too. Do you not like being here?"_

"_I like it here," Zekra assured. "I really do. It's just that… well… you know my brother, right?"_

"_Zev?" Fen said unsurely. "I don't really see him much, but I've met him once or twice."_

"_Yeah, that's him," Zekra said with a nod. "Well anyway, Zev travels a lot since he doesn't really live with us anymore. Whenever he visits though, he tells my parents and I all of the cool things he's seen on his travels. Like, he tells me about this city of crystal he once visited or these fields of endless sunflowers. And sometimes, he'll bring us back stuff. Like last time he came, he got me that awesome Frism. So, knowing that he goes around seeing all of this stuff kinda makes me wanna see what he sees. So, when he comes back this summer, I'm going to ask if I can come with him."_

"_What about your parents?" Fen then asked._

"_I'm going to talk to them about it," Zekra said. "I've still got a month left until he's supposed to come home. And, maybe during that time, I can try to improve my illusion abilities."_

"_Well, good luck with that," the Buizel said with a smile. "Maybe I'll come too. I'd like to see more of Shiron."_

"_Thanks," Zekra said cheerfully. "Now, let's keep looking at this book and see what cool stuff we could go visit when we go with Zev."_

* * *

Zekra closed the book and started to leave. It was a bad idea to come here. She should have just kept going. She didn't want to see the ruined place of her memory anymore. Once she got back to the entrance, Zekra went out and kept going through town.

At some point, she came to the residential area of town. She saw many houses, all of them having their own unique little design. They weren't very large houses, but they still seemed quite cozy. Zekra wandered into her neighborhood, seeing how none of the houses had been broken into like the shops. Perhaps the thieves didn't feel like raiding homes.

She went up to one of the houses and went to its side. There was a large tree growing between this one and the one next door, thankfully not causing damage to the houses with its roots. There was a large hole towards the bottom of the tree. Zekra peered into the hollow spot. She saw a little room that was meant to hold two small Pokémon, the flooring lined with hay. Rolled up from the inside of the tree was a tarp, to allow as a makeshift door when needed. Carvings of sorts were etched into the inside of the tree.

Zekra closed her eyes.

* * *

_Zekra was with a Sandile in the tree, where they both stared at a strange object in front of them. It was a bluish, vase-like object that was about the size of a grapefruit. It seemed to be made of crystal, and little icicles surrounded the neck of it. It was a rather strange thing to the Sandile, though Zekra already knew what it was._

"_So… your brother got this for you, huh?" the Sandile asked curiously._

"_Yeah! He says it's called a Frism," Zekra said cheerfully. "He gave it to me last week. It's pretty cool, isn't it?"_

"_It looks really nice, that's for sure," the Sandile said. "But, what's it supposed to do?"_

"_Well, I guess I'll show you," Zekra said as she slid the Frism over to the Sandile. "Say something into the opening."_

_The Sandile gave Zekra an odd look. The Zorua gave him a reassuring smile, causing the Sandile to look back at the Frism._

"_Um, this is Terron," the Sandile said unsurely into the object. "Who are you?"_

_Suddenly, the opening of the Frism became covered in white ice. Terron backed up from the shock, causing him to smack into the back of the tree. He groaned as he recomposed himself._

"_Now go ahead and warm up the white part," Zekra instructed. "You can touch it or breathe on it. Either works really."_

_Terron nodded slowly before blowing his breath onto the sealed opening. The ice immediately melted away and a voice emerged from within the object. _

"_Um, this is Terron," Terron's voice said from within the Frism. "Who are you?"_

_The Sandile stared in disbelief at the Frism as his message ended. _

"_It's a voice recorder," Terron stated. "I didn't think there were any objects that could do that."_

"_Yeah, it's pretty cool, isn't it?" Zekra said in a pleased tone. "Zev said he found it while wandering through some ice cavern. He thought it'd make a nice gift for me."_

"_You know, I wish I had an older brother who'd give me cool stuff," the Sandile replied. "All I've got are younger siblings who annoy me all the time."_

"_You could just become what Zev is to me and then you guys will get along," Zekra suggested._

"_I could, except my siblings are annoying and I don't want to dedicate time to them if they're like that," Terron scoffed. "But, whatever. Your brother seems like a cool guy. Maybe I could meet him one day and he'll get me something next time he comes here. How often does he visit?"_

"_He visits once a year, every summer for about a week," Zekra answered. "He's been doing that for about six years now. Kinda wish he stayed home like he did up to when I was a year old, but I guess that's how things are."_

"_Hm, looks like I've gotta wait another twelve months," Terron remarked. "Hopefully I can wait that long. In the meantime, what should we do with this Frism? If you don't mind, I've got a few pranks in mind that we can do with the help of this thing…"_

* * *

A few tears came out of Zekra's eyes. She shook her head as she tried to contain the memories.

"I knew I wasn't strong enough to resist looking at things from my old life," Zekra muttered to herself. "But… I can't leave just yet. There's still something I need to do."

Zekra brushed aside some of the hay within the tree hole and after a moment, she found a key. She grabbed the key with her mouth and went over to one of the houses next to the tree. She carefully put the key in the lock and slowly turned it. Once the door was unlocked, she pushed the door open and walked inside.

She shut the door behind her and set the key on the floor. With a heavy heart, Zekra looked around the house, finding that everything was exactly the same as she remembered it.

This was her home. Everything was here. Yet, it was missing a vital piece.

Her parents were no longer here. They were no longer here to greet her when she came home from visiting friends.

The house was so empty without their presence.

Zekra silently made her way through the house until she came to a particular room; her bedroom. It was a small room, but nonetheless, quite comfortable. It was a simple bedroom with a bed of hay and a couple drawers for storage. Despite such a small amount of possessions, that was all Zekra really wanted in her room.

The Zorua went up to one of the cabinets and slowly pulled out the lowest drawer. There were a few items within, such as some stored-away candy that was beginning to grow brittle and a couple books that were becoming covered with dust. But, what stood out most in this compartment was a single object: a Frism.

When Blackoak Town had been evacuated, no one had enough time to take their belongings with them. Everyone was simply ushered out of the city in a quick instant. Some Pokémon had managed to lock up their houses before leaving, thinking they would return later, but that was all they were able to do. Zekra had wanted to take the Frism with her on their trip, but she wasn't allowed to go back home to get it. She had been with Chi in another part of the town when everyone was forced to leave.

Zekra took the Frism out of the drawer and set it on the ground to inspect it. There was no message recorded within the object, nor was it damaged.

Once she had done that, she picked it up again and left the room with it.

* * *

_Zekra eagerly waited by the front door of the house as her Zoroark parents sat in the nearby living room, eating their lunch. Zekra had been waiting for this day for so long. Now, with it being the early afternoon, she knew the special time was soon._

"_Zekra, do you want some lunch?" her mother asked. "You've been sitting there since dawn. Surely you must be hungry." _

"_No, I'm fine, mom," Zekra assured. "I'm not hungry."_

"_She does this every year Zeverous visits," Zekra's father then said with a laugh. "It's a wonder that her excitement can blur out her hunger. Of course, she'll be eating everything in sight once that excitement mellows down…"_

_Just then, there was a knock at the door. Zekra hastily jumped to her feet and with a wide grin, she unlocked the door and opened it. Standing on the other side was a Zoroark with a messenger bag strapped over his shoulder. He had a somewhat tired look in his eyes, but there was still a smile on his face._

"_Zev!" Zekra cried with glee._

_The Zorua leapt at the Zoroark, where he then caught her and held her in a hug. Zekra rubbed her face against his. _

"_You're back!" Zekra said. "I missed you! This year has gone by so slowly!"_

"_Feels the same for me too," the Zoroark replied. "I missed you too during that time. I'm really glad I can see you again."_

_Zekra's parents then entered the room, happy to see their son as well. Zekra's brother went inside the house and gently set Zekra down. He then gave each of his parents a hug._

"_Welcome home, Zeverous" his mother said warmly. "How were your adventures this past year? Things been going well?"_

"_They have, for the most part," Zeverous said. "I got to see a lot of wonderful places. It's amazing where you can go if you can turn into practically any Pokémon at any time. Which reminds me…"_

_Zeverous reached into his bag and searched through the various items he kept. After a moment, he pulled out a blue crystal that was roughly the size of one of his claws. It shined beautifully as he twisted it around in his claws. He handed it to his mother with a soft smile. _

"_I found it at this place known as Crystal Cave," the Zoroark said. "If you touch it…"_

_Zeverous gently poked it with his claw. A small flash went off from the crystal, enveloping it in white light. When the light died down, the crystal was no longer blue. Instead, it was a dark shade of green._

"… _it changes colors," Zeverous finished. "There were crystals all over the cave, but for some reason, only certain crystals in a specific area did this. It was some place where three giant crystals were."_

"_Thank you," his mother said his mother started to play with the gem. "It's very beautiful. I never thought such a treasure could exist."_

_Zeverous smiled as he dug into his bag once more and brought out a blue, metallic box. It was rather small, and a turn-able handle could be seen sticking out of the side. The Zoroark showed it to his father._

"_This is something called a music box," Zeverous said. "You just wind this up a bit and it plays a song. I found it in some old ruins the locals called 'Buried Relic'. I don't really know why it was there or who even made it, but it's pretty interesting."_

_Zeverous gave it to his father. The father stared curiously at the odd device before slowly turning the handle as Zeverous had said. When he stopped, a peaceful tune came from the device and filled the room with its music. All of the family stayed silent as they listened to the wonderful music. After about a minute, the music stopped._

"_I've never seen anything like this before," the father said as he examined the music box. "What part of Shiron did you find this in again?"_

"_It was the Eastern side," Zeverous replied. "Things look rather different over there. The culture is very different from here as well. It's an interesting place."_

_Zeverous then turned to his sister and took out her present. He gave her a warm smile as he set down the treasure in front of her. He knelt down so that he could talk to her at eye level._

"_This is a Frism," Zeverous explained. "It records your voice whenever you talk into it. It's a strange little item I found when going through some ice cavern. I don't quite understand how it's able to contain your voice so well… but it's truly a wonderful treasure. I thought you'd like it."_

_Zekra smiled._

"_Thanks, Zev," Zekra said happily. "The Frism is awesome. I'm really glad that you're home. It means more to me than this gift you got me. Seeing my brother after so long is always a gift…"_

* * *

Zekra set her Frism down nearby the front door, the very spot she would sit in as she waited for Zeverous to return. She squeezed her eyes shut as she banged her head against the wall.

"Don't cry," she told herself. "Just don't. Finish what you wanted to do and then you can leave this place. And then… you'll never have to come back."

The Zorua took a deep breath and slowly went back to the Frism. She looked upon it with a melancholy gaze and let out a sigh as she sat down. She stared deep into the depths of the Frism.

"… It's been two years since I've last seen you, Zev," Zekra said reluctantly. "The last time you were here… you gave me this Frism that I'm using right now. Since then… no one's heard from you. Everyone thinks you died. In truth, I think you're dead too. At first, I refused to believe it and held onto the hope that you were still alive, but refusing to come home for some reason. But, as the months went by… that faith I had, died away and I found believing to be so much harder. And before long, I found that I no longer believed. I had accepted that you died somehow. That's where I stand now. But, if that's the case, then why am I sending this message to you by a Frism?"

Zekra let out a bitter laugh.

"Well, I guess it's because there's still a part of me that refuses to believe you're dead. I don't know why it clings to such small hope, but it's a part of me and I have to learn to accept that. But, I'm not here to talk about what I believe your fate is. No, there's something else I need to tell you. If you're dead, then you'll know all of this already. But… if you're still alive… then you need to know something in case you come back here for some reason."

Zekra took in a deep breath.

"Everyone's dead. Everyone who lived here… they all got killed by these demons. Everyone was being evacuated when something strange was happening at Emerald Mountain… and then these things came along while we were traveling and took everyone away. I… I was the only one who made it out. Nobody's left but me, Zev. But, I'm not here anymore. I left Blackoak after the incident. I knew I couldn't live here anymore, so I went to the original town we were all traveling to; Aurora Town. Things have been tough… but I've found a friend, at least, who's helping me. We even joined the Fellowship together. So, that's where I am now at this point in time."

Zekra shut her eyes.

"So, if you ever come back here… and you hear this message, you know where to find me. Please… come home and listen to this message. I've missed you, Zev. You're the only family I have left. So please, don't be dead like everyone I used to know. Just be alive. Please… I just want my brother through all of this. Find this message… before anyone else does."

Zekra stopped talking. After moments of silence, the Frism's opening became covered in white. Her message had been recorded. Her purpose for being here had been fulfilled.

The Zorua wearily grabbed the key and opened the front door. She could remember the last time she went out this very door. The last time…

… she ever saw her parents.

* * *

"_Well, I'm going to go hang out with Chi," Zekra said to her parents. "I'll see you later!"_

_Her parents, who were sitting at the table in the room and reading books, looked over at the Zorua. They both gave her a friendly smile._

"_Have fun, Zekra," her mother said. "Be sure to come back home by evening. There's been a lot of strange reports about odd creatures roaming around at night."_

"_It probably has to do with whatever's going on at Emerald Mountain," the father reasoned before looking back at Zekra. "So do as your mother says and come home before dark! Don't get into any trouble!"_

"_I won't!" Zekra said. "Don't worry about me! I'll be fine! See you!"_

_She then opened up the door and went dashing off toward her friend's house._

_The last image Zekra saw of her parents, before they disappeared from her view, was them watching her go with anxiety in their eyes._

* * *

Zekra's vision started to blur. With every step she took, her body would tremble.

_I'm done here. I can leave._

Zekra gave one last look to her Frism before locking up the house.

_I just need to get back to Terron now._

Zekra put the key back into her hiding spot. She headed down the road to get to the Drifblim.

_Just need to… _

Zekra suddenly felt numb. She stopped walking and stood there in the middle of the empty street.

A few tears streaked down her face. Her breath became shallow.

Zekra fell to the ground not a second later, felling too weak to stand. She buried her face into her paws, crying loudly.

"Why was _I _the one to live?!" Zekra wailed. "Why was it me of all Pokémon?! I shouldn't have been the one who survived! There were better Pokémon than me… there were many better Pokémon. I don't deserve being the 'lucky survivor'. It's not worth it."

Zekra sobbed some more as she curled up into a ball.

"… Terron," Zekra said. "… I hope you don't mind that I gave another friend of mine your name. It's just… I wanted to pretend you were still here. I wanted my friends to live on. And so… when my new friend needed a name… I gave him yours so I could pretend I still had at least you. Sometimes… I even see you there instead of him. I know what I did was selfish, but it was the only way I could cope. But, it's not enough to keep going lately…"

Zekra continued to lie there, crying silently.

"I don't know what I should do," Zekra said. "I can't keep living like this… with all of you in the back of mind… but I don't have what it takes to end it all…"

Zekra then noticed the Mark of the Fellowship engraved in her paw. She stared at it for a long time, her thoughts slowly processing through all of her grief. A particular memory came to her mind when she looked at the symbol. It was the memory of when she and Terron were naming their team. It was such a small, yet significant moment.

"… Team Vendetta," she said slowly. "When I came up with that name… all of you went away, if just for a while. You were all satisfied in knowing that I was fighting for you guys. Your faces… your voices… they weren't bothering me anymore. I never really thought about the name afterwards since I was so caught up in other things. As soon as I stopped thinking about that name… you all came back."

Zekra paused.

"Maybe… my team name… is what I need to focus on. Maybe… that's the key to continue living."

Zekra slowly got to her feet as she wiped away her tears. She felt stronger. She once again held a stare with the mark on her paw.

"I'll fight… for all of you," Zekra declared. "I'll keep that thought in my mind at all times, so that my spared life has a purpose. I lived so I could have a reason to fight against these Plagued Ones. I'll fight to protect others from your fate, but my true purpose is to avenge you guys. I'm supposed to bring justice to the demons who stole my life and your lives away. I'm supposed to become…"

A determined glare became etched into Zekra's eyes.

"… the living vendetta against the Plagued Ones."

As she became filled this new strength, Zekra began to walk away, failing to notice the many pairs of flaming eyes that had been watching her from high above. As she left the town, the Plagued Ones slowly went on their way as well, leaving her be once more.

* * *

**Aurora Town**

Zekra found herself standing outside the Fellowship after her departure from her old home. There was a peaceful smile on her face.

The sun was beginning to set behind Zekra. It was hard to believe that a whole day had passed already. Not much had happened today, but she was going to make sure tomorrow was a day where they got some work done. Tomorrow, for sure, they'd go on a meaningful mission.

Zekra made her way into the mess hall, where she believed Terron and Impetus would be since it was dinner time. When she went inside, she found many members were here due to it being the end of the day. In fact, the entire mess hall was nearly filled to its maximum occupation. Of course, Zekra wasn't alarmed by this since she had seen this several times already.

Instead, she glanced around in search for her two companions. She wandered around the cafeteria, occasionally eavesdropping on various conversations to see if anything interesting was being said. Unfortunately, it was always something rather uninteresting to her such as a review of the day.

Eventually, she found Terron and Impetus sitting at a table on a higher section of the tree. Terron was attempting to have a conversation with Impetus, while the Mienfoo would listen and appear to be interested while she messily ate her slab of steak.

But as Zekra watched her teammates awkwardly proceeding with their meal, a wave of memories returned to her. She thought for a moment that her Cubone companion was no longer there. In his place, still endlessly yammering to the Mienfoo between bites of his berries, was a Sandile. One she had known from the life she had left behind.

Terron.

Zekra shook her head until she found herself back in reality.

"Hey, I'm back!" she called over to her friend.

Terron and Impetus looked over at Zekra. Immediately, the Cubone jumped out of his seat and hugged her. Zekra attempted to return to hug, despite having no arms. Impetus stared at them oddly, not quite understanding what was going on.

"Welcome back, Zekra," Terron said happily. "It felt weird not having you around. I had Impetus, but it wasn't quite the same without you around."

Zekra chuckled.

"I felt the same way," Zekra said bashfully. "Guess it's what happens when we're always around one another."

"Yeah, I guess that makes sense," Terron said thoughtfully. "But, how'd your trip go?"

"Oh, it went fine," Zekra said simply. "I just needed to leave a message for my brother."

Terron looked at the Zorua oddly.

"What do you mean?" he asked curiously.

"I'll explain that to you later," Zekra replied. "Right now, I'd just like some time to relax. I'll tell you before we all go to bed."

Zekra looked over at the Mienfoo, who was attempting to figure out what this "hug" was. She watched as Impetus slowly went up to her companions and continued to stare at them curiously. After a moment of time had passed, she awkwardly mimicked their actions and wrapped them both in her own hug. It only took a couple of seconds before she became very uncomfortable with the gesture, and was quick to release the two.

"Thanks, Impetus," Zekra said. "Thanks for trying. I understand what you're trying to do."

Zekra smiled.

"Thanks… both of you," she said warmly, "for being my friends."


	19. Chapter 18: Another Child

**Chapter 18**

**Another Child**

* * *

After finishing their meals, Team Vendetta piled into their room and settled into their beds. Well, Terron and Zekra anyway. Impetus was staring at the hay on the floor with an odd gaze. She didn't quite seem to understand she was supposed to sleep there.

"Just sit down in in the hay," Terron instructed. "You'll like it. It's comfortable. It's a lot better than tree branches."

Reluctantly, Impetus put her foot on the bed. When she found that it was safe, she slowly sat in it. Her eyes grew in wonder at how cozy the bed was. She was so entranced by the bed, in fact, that she fell back into the hay and rolled around in it. Terron smiled at the sight before looking over at Zekra.

"So, how'd your trip go?" he asked curiously. "Everything go okay?"

"Oh, well it went fine," the Zorua answered. "Didn't have any problems. It was nice going there."

"How come you had to go anyway?" Terron then asked. "If you don't mind answering."

There was a pause. Zekra played with her paws during this silence. There was an uncomfortable look on her face.

"… I guess I might as well tell you," she said with a sigh. "I went there because I wanted to leave a message for my brother."

"Your brother?" Terron repeated. "You've got a brother? How come you never mentioned him?"

Zekra frowned in melancholy as her eyes lowered.

"Because I never really saw any purpose in talking about him," Zekra answered. "And thinking about him sometimes… is so painful."

Zekra let out a sigh as she set her head on the floor.

"But, I might as well tell you about him," she then said. "You deserve to know. My brother's name is Zeverous, but I always called him Zev. He's twenty years older than me. You see…"

Zekra went on to explain how her brother used to live with her until she was a year old. Then, she went on to say he started leaving to go on trips and would start visiting her once a summer and had been doing this for the past six years since she was two.

"But on the year I would turn eight… last year's summer…" Zekra went on. "He never showed up. Everyone started to think he died. It was the only explanation everyone could think of for him not coming home. I believe he's dead too, but there's still a small part of me who keeps believing he's alive. Even after not coming home for two years as of today, there's a part of me that believes he's alive. And so, in hopes of him returning, I went back to my old home and left a message for him on this voice recorder called a Frism. I figured that if he'd come back, he'd want to know why the town was vacant. So, I left him that message so that if he comes back, he can know what happened and be able to find me. I wanted to stay and wait for him, but I knew I had priorities with the Fellowship. I couldn't abandon the Fellowship when I was the one who was so eager to join their cause."

Zekra closed her eyes.

"And then I left after that," she finished. "That was pretty much how my trip went. I visited a few places in town to see how they were doing, but not much else happened. What about you? How'd your day go?"

"Oh, my day," Terron said in surprise, caught off guard by the sudden shift in topic.

He quickly regained his composure as the day's events went through his mind.

"Well, it was pretty interesting." Terron began. "I talked with Len and told him about the Weavile, and I also talked to him about my amnesia. He helped me remember something kind of interesting: the name of my world and how its layout is exactly the same as Shiron."

"Really?" Zekra asked in wonder.

"Yeah, my world's called Kuron," Terron explained. "Shiron and Kuron are both planets with one large continent and a bunch of islands everywhere. Don't know why that is, but maybe there's a connection. Maybe they were once the same world, but they got split somehow into two planets. Or maybe they're the same world, but one's the present and the other is the future of that world."

"You think you got mixed up in time travel?" Zekra asked.

"Well, maybe," Terron shrugged. "I'm just guessing. I don't really know. I just know that my world is pretty different from here. There's no Pokémon, there's less nature, and we have so much technology."

"Such similar worlds… yet so different," Zekra said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, but moving on, then I found out that apparently we need to hide that Impetus is a wild Pokémon," Terron said solemnly.

"Why's that?" Zekra asked curiously.

Terron went on to explain to her what had happened with Rey and what Novus had told Terron afterwards. When he finished, Zekra shook her head in disapproval.

"Why must everyone think like that?" Zekra wondered. "I mean, are getting wild Pokémon to like you such a rare thing?"

"I don't know," Terron said. "But, that's how things are. If we want to keep Impetus safe, we need to keep her origins a secret and help her become a civilized Pokémon. I haven't quite figured out how we're supposed to do that, but I think I have an idea for now. We'll see how that goes. Also…"

Terron went over to their bag in the corner and pulled out a strange, red cape from within before sitting back down. He showed it to Zekra.

"Novus suggested I buy this for Impetus before I left," Terron said. "It's something called a Reunion Cape. Got it on sale thankfully, or else I never would have been able to afford it. He said that there might be times when Impetus will run off and we won't be able to catch her. And then, she might get lost and we'll never find her. But, this cape fixes that problem. You see, whenever she wears it and gets separated from us, the cape will warp her back to us. They say the cape warps the wearer to whoever touched the cape last besides the wearer. Not sure how that works or how it even teleports, but I'm not going to question it. Anyway, we just need to attach it to her when she goes to sleep and everything should be fine."

"Huh, interesting," Zekra replied. "I could think of a lot of uses with that. But alright, I'll help you put it on when Impetus goes to bed. Nothing else happen today?"

Immediately, the memory of being in that lava-filled area with the voice came to mind. Yet, Terron still found he didn't want to talk about it. He felt bad knowing he would be keeping it a secret, but he knew that's how things had to be for now.

"No, nothing else," Terron said.

Zekra slowly nodded. Just like him, she also felt bad that she was keeping secrets from him. Specifically, it was about her breakdown and the true reason behind Terron's name. She didn't have the heart to tell him. And so, the two friends kept their most personal information locked away from the other, neither suspecting anything.

* * *

It was dawn of the next morning now and Zekra was nudging Terron so he would get up. Terron was reluctant to end his sleep since he barely got any, but he eventually got up after being bothered for a few minutes. He slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes. When his eyes were able to remain open, Terron noticed Impetus wasn't in her new hay bed Team Vendetta got for her last night. In fact, she wasn't even in the room.

"Where's Impetus?" he asked. "She was sleeping in her bed, wasn't she?"

"Yeah, she was," Zekra replied. "Strange… why'd she run off?"

Terron slowly got to his feet and went over to the window. He stuck his head out and looked around, thinking that she went out since staying in a room for hours at a time was too much for her. Sure enough, Terron found her in a tree branch nearby their window. She was passed out. The Reunion Cape was still tied around her neck, much to Terron's relief.

Terron was rather glad to know that Impetus hadn't tried to take it off. It had taken several hours of staying awake to wait for Impetus to fall asleep. Once she finally done that, Terron and Zekra were very quick to tie the cape around her so she wouldn't wake up. He didn't want to sacrifice his sleep all over again just to get the cape on _again_.

Terron looked back at Zekra.

"She's sleeping outside in a branch," Terron said. "I guess she doesn't like sleeping in rooms yet."

"Well, maybe she'll get used to it in time," Zekra shrugged. "But, how do you plan on getting her back here?"

"We could just walk out of the room and then that Reunion Cape will activate," Terron suggested. "She'll just pop right back next to us."

"I bet that'll be really weird, but I don't see why not," Zekra said carelessly. "Might as well test out that cape you bought."

Terron grabbed their travel bag and the two exited the room. Zekra shut the door behind them and waited for their feral companion to show up right next to them at any second.

_**VIP!**_

Suddenly, Impetus was asleep on the floor in front of the children. There were no sparkly lights or bright colors to mark her appearance. She just appeared out of thin air. She came so quickly, in fact, that Terron and Zekra were startled by her presence. They nearly jumped backwards.

Impetus woke up, realizing that her surroundings were different. She swiftly got to her feet and hastily looked at her new environment. She seemed to recognize where she was, but didn't quite understand what had brought her here. After all, she was paying no heed to the cape attached to her.

"Well… I guess it works alright," Zekra said. "Just wish it was flashier with the teleporting thing…"

Terron nodded and glanced at his feral friend.

"Hey, Impetus," he said calmly.

The Mienfoo stopped moving around and looked at Terron. She had her full attention on him, despite how occupied she was just a moment ago.

"Today's going to be different from yesterday," Terron explained. "We're going on a mission. And, same goes for pretty much every day after this. We're going to have these missions every day, and you're going to come with us. We can't just leave you here. You're a part of the team. Plus, it's the only way I can think of to get you to become a civilian. I figure that if you spend time with us, you'll understand our world better. It'll give you more to learn than if you stay here. Plus, I think you'd like it better if you could fight stuff again like you always did."

Terron smiled.

"Being in this Fellowship helped me learn about this world," Terron went on. "It's tough at times, but I really think it'll help you. It helped me, and since you and I are from other worlds, I think it'll help you too. So, that's why after we leave the Fellowship today, things will be rather different than what you normally do. I just wanted to let you know that."

Zekra glanced at Terron.

"So that's why you care so much about Impetus," Zekra thought aloud. "You see yourself in her."

"Yeah, something like that," Terron replied. "But, it's just a one-sided connection. I don't think she sees me the same way."

Impetus gave Terron an odd stare. Zekra smiled pleasantly at the Mienfoo.

"Don't worry, Impetus," Zekra chimed in. "Everything will be fine. You've got us to help you. That's what friends are for."

Impetus continued to stare at them, her expression becoming even more confused.

"Well, let's go get our mission since we didn't get to do it last night," Terron then said. "And then after breakfast, we can get going."

The three headed downstairs and treaded through the base until they came across the Bulletin Board. As usual, there was a large selection of jobs to choose from.

"Alright, let's see what we can do today," Zekra said eagerly. "We're gonna destroy the Plagued Ones one day at a time, and every mission counts."

A smile filled with resolution etched itself onto her face. Terron was about to comment on Zekra's sudden zeal, but before he could, she ripped off a particular assignment and started summarizing it.

"Hey, this one looks cool," Zekra said. "It's an escort mission. It says we have to take this Meganium family's son from Pecha City to Lavender Town. According to the map…"

Zekra wandered over to the large map behind the board. She glanced at it for a moment.

"… it's not too far away, and we get flown to the client's house." Zekra continued. "I mean, we'll have to walk from Pecha to Lavender since apparently we can't fly due to the client not being Fellowship members, but it won't be so bad. Should take only about a day's walk and then we can come back here by sometime tomorrow by Drifblim."

"But why an escort mission?" Terron asked. "I mean, that sounds kinda… I don't know… _boring_."

"Oh, I know it does," Zekra agreed. "But, it's a 'B' ranked mission. Not only do we get 900 Poké if I calculated the Fellowship's deductions properly, but if we can complete this mission successfully, then King will teach me how to use Dark Pulse. This seems easy, so if we can just do this, then I can learn that awesome power."

Terron recalled the various times he had seen such a dark power. In every single one of those times, the user had managed to accomplish quite a feat. Having Zekra with that very ability would be incredibly beneficial and make their team even stronger than it was now. They could turn the tide of many battles with that power.

"Sure, let's go on that mission," Terron replied. "And maybe it'll be more interesting than we think."

"Yes!" Zekra cried with glee. "Alright, let's get some breakfast then and plan out a route to get that Pokémon to the destination."

* * *

About an hour later, after careful planning over breakfast, the team had managed to come up with an efficient route to take them to Lavender Town. It followed the various trails that stretched along Shiron, mostly evading the need to travel through forests and other environments where wild Pokémon ran most rampant. They did need to go through one cave towards the end of the journey, but the cave was so small, that they weren't too worried about it. Besides, they were mostly satisfied that they had managed to completely avoid going in Mystery Dungeons.

Now, with the route thought out, the three were inside the Drifblim Transportation and preparing to get flown off to Pecha City. Or, at least _trying _to anyway…

"Impetus! The Drifblim is _not_ going to hurt you!" Terron shouted in exasperation. "Just let him carry you!"

A Drifblim was floating a few feet away from the Mienfoo, trying to appear as unthreatening as possible. Still, every time the Drifblim tried to get near, Impetus would gather up the white energy in her palm. Whenever that happened, the Drifblim would back off, and Impetus would dismiss the attack. Then the Drifblim would try again, and Impetus would have the exact same reaction. This had been going for five minutes. Terron and Zekra had been watching the whole thing with their Drifblim.

"Why is this Mienfoo so terrified of me?" the Drifblim asked unsurely to Terron. "I could easily take her into the sky since she cannot hurt me, but I wish to make her as comfortable as possible. What is it that frightens her?"

Terron knew the right answer was because she was a feral and she hated to be touched, let alone come very close to strangers. Still, Terron remembered how Novus said not many Pokémon were fans of feral ones. He knew that the Drifblim might have dealt with wild Pokémon before due to working with the Fellowship, and known the truth about them, but Terron didn't want to take that chance.

"She just doesn't like strangers," Terron said. "She's very vicious about that."

"I see," the Drifblim said thoughtfully. "Well, I see she wears a Reunion Cape, so perhaps she could stay here. Then, when you two get to your destination, she'd instantly teleport to your location. Of course… I'm not entirely sure if that's what would happen. Her cape might make her teleport to you two while you're still flying, and then she'd plummet to the ground due to not having a Drifblim. Then, before she hits the ground, she'd probably teleport back to you and this cycle would continue until you got to your destination. That would be a rather… interesting experience."

"Well, we could always give her one of our Sleep Seeds," Zekra's Drifblim said. "She'd be knocked out, but it's the only method I could think of to get her into the air without her being a complete panic."

"Yes, that's a good idea. We've actually had to do that to a couple of passengers who needed to travel, but were too crippled by their fear of flying," the original Drifblim said before he looked over at Terron and Zekra. "Is that okay with you two?"

Zekra frowned in dismay at the thought, but she nodded her head since it was the only solution that seemed to work. Terron, just as reluctant with the idea, let out a sigh.

"I don't know…" Terron said. "When will she wake up?"

"In about three hours," the Drifblim answered. "By then, we should be at Pecha City. So, we shouldn't have to worry about her waking up in the middle of the flight."

"… Fine," Terron said quietly. "Give her the seed."

The Drifblim nodded as it went away for a moment before coming back with a single seed in one of its arms. It slowly drifted toward the Mienfoo, causing Impetus to once again prepare her Force Palm. The Drifblim didn't drift away and continued to approach her. When Impetus saw this, she put her paw onto the Drifblim's face and unleashed the energy.

Her palm went straight through the Drifblim's head and the energy failed to release since there was nothing to release it on.

When she realized her attacks weren't going to do anything, Impetus attempted to run away. Unfortunately, the Drifblim wrapped an arm around hers and brought her to a halt. Impetus opened her mouth to let out a cry, but before she could, the Drifblim stuffed the Sleep Seed into her mouth.

Immediately, Impetus collapsed to the ground, fast asleep. The Drifblim let out a sigh before gathering her up in its arms.

"Sorry, Impetus," Terron sighed with a melancholy tone. "Maybe one day… we won't have to do this anymore."

* * *

**Pecha City**

Terron and Zekra were lucky enough to have Impetus wake up a few minutes after they landed outside the city. When she had awakened, the Drifblim left the children to themselves and headed back for Aurora Town. Impetus was rather groggy when she first woke up, but she managed to become her usual alert self after walking around a bit.

Pecha City was an interesting place to the team. It seemed to be just as populated as Aurora Town, yet there weren't any giant trees growing throughout the area as the children were used to. Instead, there were simple berry trees spread about. Several Pokémon could be seen picking fruit off the trees, giving the team the impression that these trees' fruits were free to the public. Various water fountains could be seen throughout the city, which seemed to have no other purpose than to act as showpieces for four-way roads.

The three looked around curiously at all of this, taking in the different atmosphere. It didn't quite feel like their beloved town, but it had its own little charm.

After wandering around for some time, the team eventually came to the house of their clients. It was a simple, dome-shaped house constructed out of wood. Its sides were painted a white color while the roof of the house had various plants growing out of it. Terron stared at such an odd house, finding it quite strange compared to those he remembered from Kuron. Yet, he could see how it might be considered comfortable.

The team went up to the door and Terron knocked on it a few times with his handy bone club. A Meganium opened the door and peered down at the three. She looked very tired, and the flowers growing around her neck were starting to wilt.

"Hello?" the mother asked. "Who are you three?"

"We're from the Fellowship!" Zekra said as she held up her paw to show the Fellowship mark along with the mission paper. "We got your request about needing an escort, so we came here to help you with that."

"Oh… I see," the mother said awkwardly. "I didn't realize that you were since you're children. I didn't really expect the Fellowship to have children as members…"

A grimace formed on her face. As soon as Zekra saw this, she put on a more serious expression. It was almost an expression of annoyance, but Terron could see Zekra was trying her best not to show that emotion.

"Well, we're just as good as any other members there," Zekra insisted. "So, whenever you want to go, we'll take your son to Lavender Town."

The mother seemed to consider something. She spent a few seconds pondering before making up her mind.

"Alright, well thanks for coming," she then said with a smile. "Sorry for my doubts. Anyway, I need you to escort him to Lavender Town so he could go visit one of his out-of-town friends. My mate and I would take him ourselves, but we've become a bit ill and can't seem walk for such long distances at a time."

"It's fine," Zekra said. "We don't mind. We'll take good care of your son."

The Meganium smiled. The mother turned her head and looked somewhere inside of the house.

"Come here, Syn!" she called. "Your escorts are here!"

A green blur suddenly shot out of the door and landed behind the three.

"Yay! You're here!" the child cried to the team. "I didn't think you guys would show up until later, but I'm glad you're here now!"

The mother smiled.

"You four take care of yourselves," she said before shutting the door.

Terron grew confused at the sudden and odd departure, but he didn't dwell on it. The three turned around to address the Chikorita, but just as they were going to…

"Hey, wait a minute!" Zekra exclaimed. "You're not a Chikorita! You're a Snivy!"

There indeed, was a Snivy a few feet away from them. This Syn, the one who was the son of a Meganium, was a Snivy. He was shorter than most Snivy, but that was probably because this Snivy was young and still needed time to grow. Terron and Zekra stared with unsure expressions while Impetus kept a close eye on him to make sure he didn't get anywhere near her.

"Yeah, I am," Syn said with a pleasant smile. "It's funny, because I thought I was a Chikorita too until a couple months ago."

"But, how are you this family's son if you're a Snivy?!" Zekra asked in disbelief. "Even if your dad's a Serperior, you'd still be a Chikorita!"

"Mommy and daddy told me that they found my egg when they were going through some forest," Syn explained, his voice still full of that cheerfulness. "And since then, they just took care of me. But that's okay. I like being a Snivy. Being a Snivy is awesome!"

"Oh, you're adopted," Zekra said in understanding. "I get it. I think I met someone once who was adopted. Sorry if I offended you with my weird questions about why you're a Snivy. It's just that adoptions aren't very common… to me anyway."

"It's okay," Syn said. "What are your names? Mommy and daddy said some Pokémon were going to take me somewhere today, but they didn't say what your names were."

"Well, I'm Zekra," Zekra introduced before point to her teammates. "And this is Terron and Impetus."

"Hello Zekra, Terron, and Impetus!" Syn said. "I'm Synergy, but I like being called Syn better! So call me that!"

Terron found Syn's cheeriness to look odd on the Snivy, who were more known for their smug expressions, but he didn't mind it too much. Besides, at least this Snivy didn't look like he was going to cause too much trouble for them. His expression seemed to show off a more peaceful happiness than a normal childish excitement.

"We might as well go now," Terron said. "That way, we can get most of the trip done today and you'll be able to get to Lavender Town by noon tomorrow."

"Alright, let's go!" Syn said enthusiastically.

And with that, Team Vendetta led the Snivy out of Pecha City and began the route that would eventually take him to the destination.

* * *

About two hours went by as the team led the Snivy along the travel route. So far, their mission was not a difficult one. Sure, there were times when the team would wander off the trail and get lost, but they managed to get back on the proper path before they went off too far.

Yet, that didn't stop some other problems...

"So, how many escorts have you done before?" Syn asked curiously.

"Fifty of them," Zekra answered, not wanting to worry the Snivy with their lack of escort experience. "We've been all over the west side of Shiron."

"Do you guys work for anyone?" Syn then asked. "Or do you work by yourselves?"

"We work for the Fellowship," Terron answered. "It's this cool place that we get to live in while we work. There's a bunch of Pokémon who live there with us, so it's kind of like a giant home for a bunch of teams who do random jobs."

"So does that mean you're mercenaries and this Fellowship is a home full of mercenaries?" Syn asked some more.

"No… well yes," Terron said oddly. "Sort of. I guess we could say that we are. We don't really call ourselves mercenaries… but now that I think about it, I guess we really are that. Surprised you even know what a mercenary is. I didn't think kids knew what that meant."

"You're a kid just like me!" Syn cried. "All of you guys are!"

Before Terron could say anything, Zekra shot Syn a glare.

"I am _not _a kid!" Zekra interjected. "I'll have you know that I'm eight years old, and soon to be nine in another two months! I'm nearly an adult! You look like you're about six months old!"

"No, I'm _eight _months old!" Syn corrected. "And plus, I'm a Snivy! Snivy get smarter faster than other Pokémon! I'd be like a five year old if I was any other Pokémon! But either way, you're still a kid like me! Don't go talking down to me as if we're not in the same age group!"

"I'm closer to being an adult than you are!" Zekra stated. "You're closer to the day you hatched! That's a big difference!"

As Zekra and Syn went on with the age nonsense, Terron thought about Syn's parents. Something about how the mother had given the team Syn so quickly wasn't right to Terron. He would have figured that a parent would have at least said goodbye to their child when they left with Fellowship members, but that never happened.

Terron was about to say something about that to Syn, but he was interrupted.

"Looks like we've got a stray Linoone in the way," Zekra alerted.

Terron looked back in front of him and sure enough, a few yards away, there was a slumbering Linoone in the middle of the path. He wasn't sure why it would choose to nap on a dirt path, but Terron didn't think much of it. What he did know, however, was what Zekra was implying.

"So are we going to have to fight it?" Terron asked in annoyance. "I mean, can't we just wake it up somehow and scare it off?"

"We could… except that it might attack us instead of run away," Zekra considered. "So, let's just attack it to get it out of the way. Besides, it's more fun than scaring it off."

"Fine," Terron grumbled. "So who wants to-"

"I'll take care of the Linoone!" Syn suddenly said with glee.

The Snivy immediately ran forward, laughing as he prepared to attack the wild Pokémon. Terron hastily chased after Syn. Zekra and Impetus were quick to follow behind him, though Zekra didn't seem nearly as worried as Terron.

"Syn! Get back here!" the Cubone shouted. "Let us take care of it!"

Unfortunately, Syn was much faster than the entire team and made it to the Linoone in mere seconds. He jumped onto the wild's back, making it abruptly wake up and thrash around in pain. It clawed at Syn, but before it could strike, Syn leapt back and landed a couple feet away from the Linoone.

"Impetus!" Terron said urgently as he pointed to the wild Pokémon. "You're the fastest on this team! Go stop that Linoone!"

The Mienfoo gave Terron an odd stare, but sped up and went toward Syn and the Linoone anyway. As she did, the Linoone got to its feet and charged at the Snivy. It sprang at him so quickly that Syn was unable to get out of the way and was knocked back by the headbutt. Syn fell and the Linoone lunged at him yet again to slash him.

A vine instantly shot out of Syn's collar and slapped the wild's face. The Linoone cringed and stopped attacking. As the Linoone was temporarily delayed, Impetus came in and delivered a kick to the wild's side. The Linoone went flying across the trail and tumbling farther down the road. It was quick to get to its feet, but it no longer continued to fight. It ran away, going farther down the trail and disappearing out of sight.

Terron and Zekra made it over to Syn just as Impetus ran off to finish off the Linoone. They paid no attention to this though; she'd just be teleported back if she wandered off too far. Instead, they looked down at the Snivy as he slowly got to his feet. The vine sticking out of Syn's body slid back inside him.

"Why'd you try to fight that Linoone on your own?!" Terron asked. "We're your escorts! _We_ do all of the fighting for you!"

"I'm trying to get better at battling," Syn explained. "So, I thought I'd try to battle that Linoone so I can get better. I've been doing that whenever I can. Practice is what you're supposed to do if you want to get better at fighting, isn't it?"

Terron frowned. He couldn't argue against that. Practice was needed in order to improve in anything. Besides, he realized that disagreeing with Syn would be hypocritical. Despite what Zekra was denying, Terron and her were still children and doing exactly what Syn was doing. They might have been somewhat close to adulthood, but Terron knew that they weren't adults. They were no different from Syn, even if they were slightly more competent than him.

"Still, you can't just rush into fights and do whatever you want," Terron reasoned. "You have to strategize. Otherwise, you might get yourself killed."

Syn stared up at the Cubone curiously.

"Can you teach me how to do that?" the Snivy asked. "I keep asking mommy and daddy to teach me how to fight, but they won't for some reason. Neither will anyone else. I'm smart in everything except battling, which is something I'd really like to know how to do. So, can you help me while we're on this trip?"

Terron sighed. He hadn't signed up for a tutoring session.

"I'll teach you some stuff," Zekra suddenly volunteered. "If we run into more wild Pokémon, I'll show you some good strategies."

Terron stared at Zekra in disbelief. Just a minute ago she was yelling at the kid for calling her a child. Now, she was willing to help him?

"Thanks!" Syn cheered as he hugged the Zorua.

Zekra chuckled as she pat the Snivy on the head with a paw. She looked over at Terron, who was still wearing a dumbfounded expression. She let out another laugh.

"What? It's not like I haven't done this before," Zekra grinned. "I mean, I basically had to teach you how to fight. It was kinda fun when I had to do that. It feels nice being able to help others learn. So why not do it again with this kid?"

"I just don't want him to get hurt on the trip," Terron replied. "We'd get held responsible for that. But, if you can somehow keep him safe, then it's fine. You can tutor him if you want. Surprised you want to help him when you just got done fighting, though."

"Eh, it's not a big deal," Zekra shrugged. "Just a little squabble. I'm already over it."

"Sure…" Terron said sarcastically.

_**VIP!**_

Impetus instantly reappeared besides Terron, completely out of nowhere. She quickly looked around, trying to figure out where she was and what had just happened. Terron found himself chuckling at her random return.

"Well, since everyone's here, let's keep going," Terron said. "We've got quite a ways to travel."

"Can one of you guys carry me?" Syn then asked. "My feet are getting sore from walking so slowly."

"I'm _not_ carrying you," Terron stated.

"Come on, please!" Syn asked again.

"No!" Terron insisted. "Why don't you ask Zekra to give you a ride?"

"Sorry, but I'm not very good at that," Zekra said, faking an apology. "I can't support anyone on my back very well. But Terron, you'd be a lot better at the job. You've got better carrying strength than me."

The Cubone glared sharply at the Zorua.

"Don't do this to me, Zekra," Terron said lowly with gritted teeth.

A playful smirk grew on her face.

"But you're a Cubone," Zekra reasoned. "Cubone can carry heavy stuff, and Syn's not even that heavy. He's probably as light as a leaf. You should have absolutely no trouble at all."

"Yeah!" Syn chimed in.

Terron's eyes started twitching. His own partner was selling him out. While he probably shouldn't have been surprised since Zekra was a Zorua, he still felt quite a bit of annoyance toward her words. Just as he was about to retort, Syn went behind the Cubone and jumped onto his back. The Snivy crawled up until his arms and chest were resting on Terron's skull.

The feel of having the Snivy on Terron made him very uncomfortable. His body felt so plant-like, and Terron didn't like how that felt against his skin. It just felt so wrong and he became incredibly bothered by a thought that involved him accidently getting cut by the leaf on Syn's tail. He knew why he felt this way, however; Syn was a grass-type. Terron knew his kind weren't exactly fond of those types.

"Get off me!" Terron shouted as shook his head.

Syn jumped off the Cubone, gracefully landing on the ground. Terron let out a sigh of relief before looking back at the Snivy.

"I'm not going to carry you," Terron said firmly. "Just… no. No!"

"You weren't very comfortable anyway," Syn replied casually. "Your head feels like a rock."

Syn looked over at Impetus, who was patiently waiting for the team to get going again. Syn smiled as he quickly got behind her and got onto her shoulders. He held onto the sides of her head.

"This is a lot more com-"

"_MEEEEIIII!"_

Impetus started shrieking and ran around wildly. She was in far too much of a panic to think about pulling off the Snivy. Running away was the only option on her mind right now. Syn held on tight as he laughed in glee, clearly not realizing the problem. Impetus raced down the trail, showing no signs of stopping. Zekra glanced at Terron with a frown.

"You should have just carried the Snivy," Zekra said in disapproval.

"_What?"_ Terron cried. "Why couldn't _you_? Were you just really lazy!?"

Zekra shot Terron the dark expression that she gave anyone when truly mad at them. The bared teeth and pink aura were all there. Yet, Terron didn't feel scared of her expression as he had in the past. He didn't know why, but he didn't think much of it.

"Shut up!" Zekra shouted. "I'm not lazy! I just don't want to carry the kid!"

"So because you don't want to do something, you pass it onto me?!" Terron asked incredulously. "You'd rather give me some task rather than suck it up and do it yourself?! What kind of a reason is _that_?!"

"Like it's a big deal!" Zekra stated. "It wouldn't kill you! Cubone are strong! You've even carried _me _at times! Why do you have to make such a fuss out of this!?"

"Why do you have to be a little shrew sometimes?!" Terron asked in return.

Zekra's blue eyes glowed maliciously. Before anything could be said, Zekra rammed her head into the Cubone. The two fell to the ground, where they immediately scuffled. As the two bit, scratched, bashed, and punched one another, Impetus warped back to the two. She was about to continue running, but she noticed the fight and temporarily forgot about the Snivy still attached to her.

She wasn't sure what to make of the situation. She didn't know why they were attacking one another when they always seemed to get along so well earlier. It was a very odd contrast.

Syn peered over the side of Impetus's head and noticed the fighting. He gently got off the Mienfoo.

"Why are you guys fighting?" he asked.

Terron and Zekra stopped. They looked over at their client and then back at each other. They quickly separated from one another and got back to their feet.

"Had a little argument," Zekra answered blandly. "But, it's all good. We're fine now."

"Yeah…" Terron said half-heartedly.

Syn smiled as he got ready to climb back onto Impetus's shoulders. The Mienfoo was quick to move out of the way. She charged up the white light in her palm.

"Syn… just walk," Terron said, not in much of a mood to talk. "Impetus doesn't like carrying Pokémon. None of us do."

"Awwww, you guys are mean!" Syn whined.

Nonetheless, Syn didn't bother to climb onto any of them. With that taken care of, the four once again headed for their destination. Their journey was certainly turning out to be an eventful one.


	20. Chapter 19: Different Kinds of Knowledge

**Chapter 19**

**Different Kinds of Knowledge**

* * *

**Route 55**

"Alright, Syn. You see that Mareep just chilling there by that tree?" Zekra asked.

"Yeah, I see it. It's kind of hard to miss it when it's all yellow," Syn replied with a nod.

"Alright, well what do you know about Mareep?"

Syn stuck his forked tongue out the side of his mouth as he thought.

"They're electric Pokémon. Which is obvious since they're yellow…"

"Not every yellow Pokémon is an electric-type. I mean, you're yellow."

"But I'm not _all _yellow. I'm mostly green, which is the color of grass Pokémon."

"Alright, whatever. It's mostly yellow, which means it's an electric-type. I guess you can work with that for now. Back to battling. Now, how do you plan on attacking that thing?"

"By ramming into it."

"You don't know any other kind of attacks?"

"Well, I _could_ use my vines, but they don't exactly listen to me all the time…"

"What do you mean by that? Are you saying that your vines have a mind of their own?"

"Yeah, they do."

"I know that grass-types have some weird plants in their bodies, but I really don't think any kind of plant has a mind of its own."

"You don't know that! You're not a grass Pokémon!"

As Zekra and Syn continued to ramble, Terron and Impetus sat against an unoccupied tree near the trail. They both ate their late lunch and watched the others prepare for the battle. This was the first time Zekra was trying to teach Syn since the start of the journey. Terron was expecting to be entertained by their battle with the Mareep, but watching the two ramble on with their conversation was amusing enough. Even Impetus seemed interested in the yammering.

Zekra let out an agitated sigh after blabbing with Syn for a while.

"Guess we'll just focus on 'controlling' your vines and attacking with them," Zekra said. "Sound good?"

"I guess so," Syn shrugged.

Zekra's body became coated in pink light before she transformed into a Snivy. Unlike the other times she transformed, she no longer had the Zorua tail. It was a normal, Snivy tail. When she saw this, Zekra grinned.

"Ah, finally got that down," Zekra said in a pleased tone. "Now I just need to work on staying in this form longer and becoming forms I don't have in front of me. And using the attacks… okay… maybe I actually still have a lot to learn…"

Zekra shook the thoughts out of her head.

"Anyway," she continued, "let's get started now that I'm you. Get your vines out."

"You're not really me…" Syn pointed out, "but, alright. I'll try."

Syn closed his eyes and started to mutter something. From what Zekra could tell, it sounded like he was _talking_ to his vines. After a moment of this, Syn opened up his eyes and looked back at Zekra.

"They don't wanna," Syn reported.

Zekra let out a sigh as she attempted to summon her form's vines. In an instant, two vines slid out of her collar and hung above her head.

"Ha! It's not so hard!" Zekra laughed. "See! You can do it at will too!"

"You only got them out so quickly because they're not real," Syn said, not very amused. "Plus, whenever they come out, it's a little painful. It's like a snake slithering out of your body… I know you didn't feel that. You didn't make a weird face."

Zekra frowned. Her vines dropped to the floor.

"Just try again," the Zorua instructed. "We can't stick around here all day. I'm surprised that Mareep has been patient enough for us."

Zekra glanced over at Mareep to find it was still hanging around the tree that was a few feet away from them. It didn't seem to care about their presence and was now taking a nap. Syn looked at the sheep as well before letting out a sigh. He closed his eyes once more.

"Nope, they keep saying they don't wanna do anything," Syn said.

Zekra grabbed the Snivy by the collar with her hands and started to shake him violently.

"Well tell them to do it anyway!" Zekra cried. "They're not a separate entity from you! They're just a stupid plant in your body that's connected to you! How hard can it be to-"

_**WHAP!**_

Suddenly, Zekra was smacked across the face by a vine. Zekra's form shifted instantly and she turned back into a Zorua. She dropped the Snivy and rubbed her cheek before glancing at Syn again. The vine that had slapped her was slowly going back inside his body.

Zekra quickly snapped her jaws onto the vine and started yanking it out of the Snivy. Some low growls escaped her maw as she pulled.

"Ow! Stop it!" Syn screamed. "Stop pulling on my vine!"

"Tell it to stop resisting and let me pull on it then!" Zekra muttered as she held the vine.

Syn attempted to do such, but his vine wouldn't listen. Instead, another vine shot out of his collar and started battering Zekra. Zekra bit down harder on the vine in her mouth as she kept pulling. Syn stopped trying to control his vines and grabbed ahold of the one Zekra held. He attempted to pull it away from her.

Zekra swiftly yanked the vine forward, causing Syn to go flying over her head. The sudden momentum began pulling Zekra as well, but she wouldn't let that happen. She dug her feet into the ground jerked her head to the side. Syn swiftly changed course, but this time, he headed straight for the slumbering Mareep.

_**THUD!**_

Syn crashed right into the Mareep's side. The momentum was so strong, in fact, that it sent the sheep tumbling down the trail. The Mareep jolted awake and sent out a weak bolt of thunder into the air out of reaction. Despite the unintentional use, the electricity flew toward Terron and was harmlessly absorbed into his helmet. When the Mareep managed to get to its feet, it bolted away from the group, shrieking in fright.

Terron oddly rubbed his skull after the strange feeling of the static passed. As soon as he did so, he heard crackling. Curious, he took off his helmet and found that there was still some static lingering in the mask. Some of the sparks leaped onto his hands before disappearing a few seconds later.

"Huh, interesting," Terron said. "I'm temporarily electrically charged. I bet that could be useful somehow…"

Impetus stared oddly at the helmet and watched the remaining bits of static fade into Terron's body. She then took the helmet out of Terron's hands and inspected it curiously.

"Don't break it," Terron warned. "I mean, I know it's kinda difficult to do that since it's a dragon skull, but don't try to."

Impetus flipped the helmet and stuck it onto her head. She blinked a few times. Terron couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous the helmet looked on her. He could tell that she could barely even see out of it.

As Terron got his helmet back from Impetus and put it on, Zekra hastily made her way over to the Snivy. She stopped in front of him as Syn slowly got up. He rubbed his head that now throbbed from being bashed into the sheep. Zekra finally released the vine from her grasp and let it fall to the ground. The vine, as if mad at her, slapped her one more time before going back inside Syn. Zekra didn't bother to retort.

"Are you okay?" Zekra asked worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Syn replied. "Just a little headache. But, what you did with my vine… that was so cool!"

Zekra tilted her head to the side as she gave the child a funny look.

"Wha…?" she started to say.

"That thing where you threw me into the Mareep!" Syn clarified. "It was awesome! I think I did a lot more damage that way than I could have by myself! You should do that again next time we see another enemy!"

"Wha…?" Zekra said yet again.

Syn let out a chuckle at her amusing reactions.

"You and I just made synergy!" the Snivy explained. "We combined our powers and together, we did more than we could do by ourselves! Like a team attack!"

Zekra nodded thoughtfully. She looked at Syn curiously.

"Team attack, huh?" Zekra said. "Like… if a Turtwig were to send out a bunch of leaves at a foe, and then a Pidgey blew wind behind those leaves… the leaves would spin even faster and cause more damage than they could have without the wind. Or, at least, speed up the velocity of the leaves…"

"Or the Pidgey could blow the enemy into the air, and the Turtwig can spam its leaves at the enemy!" Syn suggested. "Then, the enemy wouldn't be able to escape!"

"Or, a Cubone could get struck by electricity, and then he could ram a susceptible opponent with his electricity-infused head."

Zekra and Syn looked over to find Terron and Impetus making their way back to the group. The two stopped in front of the Zorua and Snivy. Terron tapped his helmet with his club.

"What you've figured out is pretty interesting, Syn," Terron said. "We might use that theory to come up with some new attacks. But, how did you come up with that idea? I don't think I've seen Pokémon use combination attacks."

Syn chuckled.

"Contests and competitions," Syn answered. "Mommy used to take me to those since she always liked them. Whenever the opening ceremony began, there were always two Pokémon who would combine their powers and make all of these pretty lights. No one ever really did that for battles though at the competitions, which is pretty weird since I think it'd be pretty useful."

"And then you came up with an idea that it'd be good for combat?" Terron asked curiously.

"Yeah!" Syn replied. "It just came to mind one day after watching one of those events. Told everyone about my idea, but no one really went along with it since making up all the kinds of team attacks takes a lot of thinking."

"I'll say," Terron said in agreement. "I only came up with my idea since I just happened to get hit with electricity and saw how it stayed in my helmet. But, your idea is pretty cool. Thanks for the inspiration."

"You're welcome!" Syn cheered.

Terron dug out of the bag strapped to him and pulled out an apple. He handed it to the Snivy, who happily munched away at it. Terron then pulled out another apple and gave it to Zekra.

As the two had their own lunch, Terron thought over the information Syn gave him. This synergy he spoke of could be a valuable tool. Terron knew he and the rest of the team would have to think up some team attacks, but he was happy to know of a new battle style. Terron found he was starting to enjoy the Snivy's company due to this. The child was full of such interesting thoughts.

Terron smiled before looking down the trail.

"Well, if you guys are done training, you should probably get going," Terron said. "We should be able to make it to our final rest stop of the day before sunset if we go now."

"Yeah, we're done," Zekra said. "Let's get going."

The four went forward, continuing down the path as they chatted about whatever came to their minds.

* * *

Four hours passed. The four had taken many breaks along the way, whether it was to eat or to do training, but they were still making steady progress toward their destination. According to their map, the four would be able to make it to their last stop of the day in about thirty minutes. There, they could camp out for the night.

At the moment, the team and Syn were traveling down the road that ran along the side of the Obsidian Cave Mystery Dungeon. The cave wasn't really made of obsidian, but the locals gave it the name due to its uncanny appearance similar to the rock. As the team walked past it, they couldn't help but stare at it and listen to the roars coming from within.

As the team walked, Impetus suddenly became very still. Her eyes moved around swiftly, as if trying to find something. The team stopped when they noticed Impetus's strange behavior.

"What's wrong, Impetus?" Terron asked curiously.

Impetus didn't say anything. She glanced at the cave suspiciously. Her eyes squinted as she crouched low into the grass.

Impetus's eyes suddenly grew wide. She stood back up and took a few steps backwards. Her eyes were filled with terror. Terror… that she had never shown before.

"Impetus?" Terron asked again.

The Mienfoo hastily fled from the sight, getting as far away as possible from the dungeon. She didn't stop running. The team watched her fade away into the distance, but none of them bothered to chase after her. She'd get brought back in time.

"What's the matter with Impetus?" Syn asked curiously.

"I don't know," Terron said. "I mean, I know it's something about this cave, but I don't know why she'd be so scared. Sure, they're scary places, but only on the inside…"

"What's so special about this cave?" Syn then asked.

"It's something called a Mystery Dungeon," Terron explained. "They're these places that get corrupted somehow and-"

"I know what a Mystery Dungeon is," Syn interrupted. "A lot of Pokémon tell me about them. There's no need to tell me."

"Well then…" Terron replied in annoyance.

Syn stared at the cave, but with a more curious expression than Impetus did. He tapped his leafy fingers against the side of his head and swayed his tail back and forth.

"Well, nothing seems out of place," Syn reported. "It feels a little weird since it's a dungeon and all, but all the other dungeons I've seen have this same kind of feeling."

"Maybe Impetus was just doesn't like the atmosphere," Zekra suggested. "I mean, she's never been a Mystery Dungeon before, so that could be it…"

Terron wasn't quite sure if that was true or not. Still, there was no way to know for certain. It wasn't as though Impetus could talk. Maybe in the future, when she _could_ talk, Terron would ask her what was going through her head.

Upon thinking about this, Terron suddenly remembered something else.

"Hey, Syn," Terron said. "I have something I want to ask you."

The Snivy looked back at Terron and smiled cheerfully.

"What is it?" he asked curiously.

"What are your parents like?" the Cubone asked. "How do they treat you?"

"That's a pretty weird question," Syn commented. "But, mommy and daddy are nice. They take good care of me and play with me."

"They haven't been acting weird at all?" Terron asked.

"No… not really," Syn said oddly. "Although, they've been getting sick lately, so they haven't been taking care of me as much. But, that's not weird. They're just ill."

"How long have they been sick?" Terron asked some more.

"Um, about a month," the Snivy answered. "Yeah, a month."

Terron nodded slowly and looked away. It seemed there was nothing unusual really. Whenever anyone was sick, they usually acted a bit off. Still, something didn't seem right about the mother. But, Terron couldn't figure out what felt so wrong and decided to let it go… for now.

The three continued their journey, where they were shortly reunited with Impetus. Though she stayed with them this time, Terron couldn't help but notice that she kept staring back at the cave they had passed. Clearly, something was troubling her, but nothing could be done to help her.

Eventually, the four made it to their rest stop; a small gathering of cherry blossoms known as the Sakura Grove. Since it was summer, the pink flowers were not blooming and instead, the trees were all filled with their usual green leaves. More importantly though, there didn't seem to be any wild Pokémon around the grove.

The team went over to one of the trees and plopped down near its base. Terron and Zekra saw that the sun was starting to set. Night would be upon them soon.

"So, we're camping out for the night?" Syn asked.

"Yeah, we are," Zekra answered. "We don't really use hotels or anything. You don't mind that, do you?"

"No, not really," Syn shrugged. "Camping is cool. Just as long as we don't make a campfire."

"Well, we're not going to have one of those," Zekra laughed. "We don't have any fire Pokémon on the team to make one of those."

As the light faded from the sky, everyone got ready for bed. Despite how the time had just barely become nightfall, the whole team was tired from their lack of sleep and constant traveling. A well-deserved rest was needed. Terron and Zekra cuddled close together while Impetus made her way up the tree and found a nice spot amongst the branches. Syn joined Terron and Zekra where they slept, though Terron had the Snivy sleep against Zekra's unoccupied side. Terron still didn't like Syn touching him.

When everyone was comfortable, they all fell asleep.

* * *

The next morning, the team woke up and had their breakfast of dried fruits and jerky. They all felt they had a good rest and were ready for the final hours of their journey. All that needed to be done now was walk about an hour and go through Dreaded Cavern. Once they got out of there, they'd only have to walk for another two hours and they'd arrive at Lavender Town.

All of this would only take about four hours. The team would surely get to the town a little after noon. Their time with Syn was ending. They'd miss the interesting little fellow, but they weren't too upset by the thought of the inevitable departure. After all, they knew from the very beginning that they'd be forced to leave him once the mission was done.

After everyone had breakfast, the team set off. Eventually, after an uneventful hour passed, the four came to the cave that they sought.

Dreaded Cavern's entrance was nothing special. It was simply a huge hole in the side of a small hill covered in green. The entrance was a bit smaller than normal caves, but all of the team members could easily get into the hole. The team stared at the cave for a little while, trying to see past the darkness that filled the cave's entry.

"Why would they name this place Dreaded Cavern?" Syn asked curiously. "That's a horrible name to give to someplace. That just screams that something is wrong with the cave."

"I think it's because there's a bunch of dark-types in there," Zekra said. "But, you're right. They probably should have given it a better name. I bet no one goes through here because of that."

"The guide also said there are a couple of dragons in there, too," Terron added. "So, maybe the name refers to them as well since dragons are supposed to be fierce."

"Well, whatever the reason, at least the cave's short," Zekra stated. "Should be able to get out of there in an hour if we follow the trail. And thankfully, it should be pretty straight forward since it's not a Mystery Dungeon."

Terron nodded as he pulled out the Light Ball he had received from King. It was still de-activated, and he hadn't figured out how to activate it again. Still, he would have to find out today, or else they were never going to get through this cave. He looked at the dull sphere in his hands.

"Light ball, activate!" Terron commanded.

Nothing happened. Terron took a step inside the cave and lightly tapped the sphere against the wall. Still, nothing happened.

"Work already!" Terron shouted in frustration.

Terron slammed the ball into the wall with more force. While the ball didn't crack from such an impact, it still refused to light up.

"Why won't it work?" Terron asked. "What did King do that made it light up?"

"What's it supposed to look like?" Syn asked curiously.

"Like a bolt of electricity is flying around inside it," Terron answered. "It looks pretty cool actually. Too bad it won't work…"

"Hmm, let me try something with that thing," Syn then said.

Terron handed the Snivy the ball. He watched as Syn rotated the ball around in his hands to get a full view of it. Syn stepped inside the cave as well before gently placing the ball along the cave's side. With one quick movement, he dragged the ball across the wall. A couple sparks flew into the air and temporarily lit up the dark cave. Electricity suddenly appeared inside the sphere and began bouncing off the walls of the ball.

Now that light was available, Terron could see what the cave's interior looked like. Unlike Jolton Cave, this cavern held none of the odd electric crystals. Instead, this place was completely made of limestone and actually had quite a bit of room to walk around in. Terron didn't see any Pokémon near them, but he knew that they were around. They were probably in the deeper parts of the cave.

Syn smiled as he handed Terron the ball.

"It just needed a spark," Syn said. "I figured making friction could do that."

"Huh… you're a smart kid," Terron remarked.

"Well I'm a Snivy," Syn grinned. "Snivy are super smart! Not as smart as psychic Pokémon, but we're still smart!"

Terron nodded as he looked at the glowing sphere within his hands. It was exactly as how he remembered it. Terron took a moment to marvel at the beauty of the encased static before the rest of the team entered inside the cave. Impetus was rather reluctant to go inside due to how enclosed and dimly lit it was, but Zekra managed to get her inside with some coaxing. Once everyone was ready, they treaded farther into the cave.

* * *

Traveling through Dreaded Cavern was not a difficult task compared to the Mystery Dungeons Terron and Zekra had to venture through. Yet, that didn't mean this cave had its own share of hardships, despite not being a dungeon cave. For one, they had to be more cautious about where they walked. There were several times when one of the team members would step onto some loose rocks and end up slipping. That had happened at least four times to everyone.

Another problem was that Syn was becoming a lot slower. He could still walk, but the team noticed a significant change in his speed. When asked why this was, he explained that he needed the sun to make his movements faster. Now, in this sunless cave, he had to put more effort into keeping up with the team.

And last of the problems, Impetus was rather uneasy inside of the cave. She wasn't as panicky as she had been when encountering the dungeon they saw yesterday, but she still seemed nervous. She'd glance around everywhere at every second. She never seemed to take a break from her alertness. Terron figured it was because she was practically walking around in the dark in an environment she had never seen before. He didn't know how to fix the issue unfortunately and just tried to help her cope by talking to her to keep her mind off the cave.

Despite these problems, the team still did well. They had traveled through most of the cave with only a small amount of resistance in the form of wild Pokémon. Now, they neared the exit, which was a giant hole of light at the end of a long tunnel. The team happily stepped inside that tunnel and headed for that light. It would take a few minutes to get to that light, but they took their time in getting toward it.

"It's the sun!" Syn cried happily. "I can be with the sun soon! Then my tail can stop drooping and I won't have to drag it around anymore!"

"_Meh!" _Impetus cheered.

The four walked past a couple of chambers that connected to the tunnel. Within them, the team could see some wild Pokémon either sleeping or eating. Zekra stared at a Geodude that was wandering around one of the chambers by itself. She started to smile evilly as she got Syn's attention.

"Hey, you want to have one last battle in this cave before we leave?" she asked. "That Geodude could make good practice for you. They're pretty easy if you can get your vines to work."

"Sure!" Syn said. "Let's go!"

Without another word, the two took off into the room with the feral. Terron and Impetus stopped as soon as half their team disappeared. The Cubone let out a sigh.

"Guess we have to wait for them," Terron said in disapproval. "At least we're almost-"

It was then that Terron noticed another Pokémon in a different chamber. It had a couple of other Pokémon with it in the chamber, but he didn't pay attention to those ones. No, he paid attention to the slumbering Axew. His eyes became fixed on the little tusked dragon. He hadn't seen a single dragon in the entire cave until now.

Everything else in reality no longer seemed to exist. Only one thought went through his mind;

_It's got the bones I want._

Terron pressed his helmet further onto his head and set the bag on the ground. Impetus gave Terron an odd glance.

"Hey Impetus, you want to help me with something?" he asked, his voice becoming eerily happy.

"_Meh?" _she asked curiously.

"You want to help me take out an Axew?" Terron asked with a smirk. "I need the bones. If you help me, I'll let you have the meat. What do you say?"

Impetus was confused by Terron's sudden glee, but she did like the idea of getting to battle. So, as she had seen the others do when they wanted to say yes, she nodded. Terron's grin only seemed to grow when he saw this.

"Alright, let's go. Don't worry about the others in the room; they'll just run away. We only care about the Axew."

Terron set the Light Ball on the ground so both teams could see what they were doing in the other rooms. The light's radius seemed to stretch that far. Once the light had been resolved, Terron ran forward and entered the room. The other Pokémon who were awake immediately ran away from him as Terron predicted. The Cubone brought his weapon down on the Axew, but before it could make contact, the Axew woke up and rolled out of the way. Terron let out a growl.

"Get that dragon, Impetus!" Terron commanded. "Weaken it!"

Impetus shot into the room and landed in front of the Axew. She sent a kick into its face, making the little dragon fly into a wall. It crashed into the thick stone before tumbling to the ground, panting heavily. Terron charged forward, preparing to swing his club at the Axew like a baseball bat.

The Axew saw Terron and swiftly blew a stream of blue fire at him. Terron was about to get out of the way, but a different idea came to mind instead. He was about to disagree with it, but as the energy closed in, Terron stuck with the plan. He grabbed his weapon with hands and held it in front of him. The fire scorched him as he got the full force of the attack, but the Cubone withstood the pain and held his ground.

After only getting burned by the dragon energy for a couple seconds, it abruptly stopped when Impetus unleashed the energy in her paw upon the Axew. The little dragon skid across the ground until it put down its paw and brought itself to a halt.

But before it could attack, Terron threw his flaming bone at the Axew. Thanks to the bone being covered in dragon fires, the Axew was severely injured once the weapon smacked into its head. It let out a loud cry of pain as Terron's weapon came back to his hand. The bone was charred a deep black, but none of that mattered to Terron. Not even the pain of his burnt skin mattered. All he cared about were the bones he would soon be getting.

"It's time we try out one of those team attacks Syn was mentioning," Terron said as he looked at his companion. "Impetus, I want you to throw me at that Axew."

The Mienfoo gave him an odd stare.

"You know what I'm talking about," Terron said more firmly. "Hurry!"

Impetus sensed to urgency in his voice and reluctantly went up to him. Despite not liking the idea, she picked up the Cubone and tossed him with all her might. Terron flew through the air as he adjusted his weapon so that the sharp side was facing away from him. As he closed in on the Axew, he saw it was getting ready to unleash another wave of dragon fire upon him.

It never had the chance to use its attack.

Terron slammed into the dragon and with his increased momentum, rammed the bone into its heart. Had he tried to do that by himself, he never would have pierced the thick hide of a dragon. But with Impetus's strength and the dragon-charred bone, he had managed to penetrate the hide and impaled the heart.

The Cubone got to his feet and looked at the corpse before him. His bone was stuck in its chest, and blood was oozing out of the wound. The eyes were still open, frozen in shock. Terron put his foot onto the dragon's stomach as he ripped the bone out. Even more blood shot out of the wound that got all over Terron, but he found he wasn't disgusted by it. In fact, he wasn't alarmed by the fact that he had just killed a Pokémon.

_It's so much easier than expected. _Terron thought. _It's just… so simple. Why was I so scared? I mean, I'm glad I didn't kill Impetus, but still. Wait, why am I thinking like this? I'm not like Zekra where I can handle gore like it's nothing. What's changed so that I don't feel so terrified and disgusted right now?_

Terron shook his head. It wasn't important. What was important, however, was that he got what he needed from this corpse.

"Alright Impetus, thanks for your help," Terron said. "I couldn't have done it without you. Now, come here so you can get what I promised you."

Impetus came over to Terron and together, the two tore apart the Axew. As Impetus enjoyed a nice meal, Terron brought the bag back over to them and started making some bone weapons. He made a few more bone thorns to add to his collection as well as getting not one, but _two _clubs to replace his old club. He figured carrying two bones would be a lot more beneficial in battle, even if it was uncommon to see Cubone and Marowak carrying dual bones. He packed any other decent club bones inside of the bag for future use, as well all the other bones in case he could find a purpose for them later. Surely he could think of a way to tamper with them and make interesting weapons.

By the time the two were done with the Axew, it was nothing but a hollow shell.

"Alright, let's go find Zekra and Syn," Terron said. "I'm pretty sure they're done now."

Impetus nodded. Terron noticed the blood on both of their bodies.

"Yeah… we'll probably need to wash off before we go inside Lavender Town," Terron stated. "No one wants to see us like this."

Impetus stared at her bloody paws and started licking them clean. Terron chuckled at the sight.

_**FWOOOSH!**_

Terron and Impetus became silent. The sounds of something burning filled the air. Yet, neither smoke nor flames were seen or smelt. Terron looked at Impetus and noticed that she was looking toward the Light Ball. Her eyes were wide open.

_**SKREEE!**_

Terron and Impetus's hearts started to race. They had never heard such a sound before, but they didn't need to know what that was in order to know that peril was coming upon them. Terron gripped the weapons in his hands. Impetus fled from the sight and disappeared to wherever the other wild Pokémon went.

And then… strange creatures filled the tunnel the team was once in. They poured into the room and surrounded the entrance.

They gazed at him with their flaming eyes. Etched upon each of their faces was a sinister grin. Their bodies gaze streamed with wisps as if they were all demented ghosts.

But… they weren't ghosts. There were Ghastly and Haunter, but there was more than that. There were Onyx and Golbat amongst them… and so much more.

As Terron looked upon an Eevee within the swarm, his eyes frozen in fear and heart beating fast, he realized what these things were. No one had to tell him.

These were the creatures that slaughtered everyone Zekra knew.


	21. Chapter 20: The Voices

**Chapter 20**

**The Voices**

* * *

"Plagued Ones," Terron whispered.

That's what these creatures were named by the Fellowship. That was the name given to such demonic creatures like these. Terron had never tried to imagine what the Plagued Ones looked like, but now as he was forced to look at them, he grew certain that he could have never imagined their horrific appearance accurately.

The Cubone didn't know what to do. He couldn't fight them since there were far too many. There had to be at least a hundred staring at him right now and even more in the other parts of the cave. He couldn't outrun them either. They had him completely surrounded like a thick, impenetrable fog.

He could only look into their flaming eyes. In them, he saw no soul. It was just a gateway into an abyss of bright color.

Yet, Terron tried to keep a calm composure. Panicking wouldn't solve anything. He needed to think of a way out of this. Zekra escaped out of this once, so surely he could too.

"Wait, Zekra," Terron said abruptly. "Zekra! And Impetus and Syn!"

Terron stopped trying to act composed and realized that his friends were probably dead by now. Zekra may have been lucky enough to escape the Plagued Ones once, but that was no guarantee that she was still alive now. Not to mention, she had Syn with her. Protecting herself and someone else decreased her chances of escaping. Then there was Impetus, who was alone and without knowledge of what these creatures were…

"No… they can't…" Terron muttered.

The Cubone started to hyperventilate. He gripped his skull as his vision blurred.

"No… I don't want to die here…"

Terron squeezed his eyes shut.

"I want my friends to live… I want to live…"

He shook his head as his body trembled.

"But… how do we fight the Plagued Ones? There's too many. They're everywhere, and we're scattered. We can't win when there's so many of these monsters…"

_**Terron…**_

The Cubone's eyes snapped open at the sound of the voice.

"No, not this again!" Terron cried. "Not at a time like this!"

_**Terron.**_

"Go away!" Terron shouted as he put his hands over his ears from within the skull. "Leave me alone! I don't want you here!"

_**Why?**_

"Because I don't want to die where you are…" Terron whimpered. "Whenever you come, I always go somewhere else. I'm going to get killed anyway, but just let me die in this place rather than your place. That way, I can maybe see my friends before I go…"

_**Why are you going to die?**_

"Because there's a bunch of Plagued Ones about to kill me!" Terron said in exasperation. "It's obvious, isn't it? If you're me, you should be able to see that they're right in front of me. They're closing in on me…"

_**You will not die.**_

"Of course I am!" Terron cried. "Look at th-"

Terron suddenly stopped talking. His entire being froze. His eyes couldn't blink. He wanted to scream, but he was too terrified to make a sound.

A Plagued One in the form of a Haunter was a couple inches away from his face. The others lingered in the background. They were all staring at him. Terron hesitantly glanced to the side to see that even more Plagued Ones had gathered around him.

Terron slowly brought his attention back to the Haunter. It continued to gaze at him with its bright eyes.

None of the Plagued Ones moved. None of them attacked. Terron couldn't understand why. Why were they so close, yet choosing not to finish him off? What was keeping them at bay?

After what felt like an eternity had passed, the Haunter flew behind Terron and grabbed his shoulders. But, its touch did not bring a chilling sensation as Terron expected. It felt… so inviting and comfortable. Terron's fear no longer seemed to matter. All his worries seemed to melt away. He was no longer troubled by the voice in his mind, or the inescapable fact that he'd die here. Everything he cared for no longer seemed to have meaning.

That is, except one thing.

"My friends…" Terron said slowly, as if under a trance. "Where are my friends…?"

"_What friends?"_

Though its mouth didn't move, Terron knew that the voice was coming from the Haunter. Despite its startling appearance, it had such a soothing voice.

"My friends… they were here with me…" Terron said.

"_You have no friends. Those that were with you earlier are not your friends. They simply want to use you for their own needs. Like that Zorua, who doesn't even see you as who you are. But, don't feel bad. We are your true friends."_

Terron's memories of the Pokémon he was traveling with quickly faded from his memory. Then, followed by that one, all of his memories of the Fellowship drifted away. They were replaced by a void of peace.

"You… are my friends?" Terron asked.

"_Yes. We are. We care about you, Terron."_

A Chespin and Charmander Plagued Ones approached Terron's sides and embraced him. Terron's eyes slowly dulled as he looked at the Haunter.

"Friends…" he muttered. "You're… my friends…"

"_Yes, we're all friends. Now, come with us. Come with us to your new home."_

Terron looked around at all the Plagued Ones and saw that they were coming closer. Yet, he did not feel afraid. Their presence made him feel at peace. He wanted to be with these nice Pokémon. He wanted to be with his friends.

_**NO! YOU DO NOT WANT THAT!**_

Terron blinked. Why didn't he want to be with these Pokémon?

_**Come back to your senses, Terron! **_

Terron felt a strange fear growing inside of him. Why was he feeling so scared?

_**Terron!**_

That fear amplified as Terron started to remember something was very wrong with his situation.

_**TERRON!**_

The hazy look in Terron's eyes suddenly disappeared as he finally snapped out of his trance. Everything he had forgotten in those few minutes came rushing back. He gasped heavily as he fought against the Plagued Ones holding him. He bashed his bones into the creatures and watched as they dissipated into thin air. Terron grabbed his bag from off the floor and flung it over his shoulder.

A surge of unknown power and determination filled Terron's being, completely eradicating his terror. He didn't know what was making him this way, but Terron had no time to ponder.

"I will _**NEVER **_go with you monsters!" Terron declared with a bravado that was not his own. "I know what all of you really have in mind! You want to kill me just like you have with all your other victims! You want me as part of you collection!"

"_But why would you want to stay here?" _an Eevee Plagued One asked._ "What we told you wasn't untrue. Zekra doesn't care for you. You're nothing more than a puppet to project her other Terron's image onto. She's only with you because she can imagine you're her other Terron. If you come with us, we will like you for who you are, not for who you represent."_

Terron had enough with their attempted convincing and threw one of his weapons at the Eevee. It burst into a swarm of streams before fading away into nothingness. As the bone returned to Terron, it destroyed a couple other Plagued Ones along the way.

And then, fueled by this newfound strength within him, Terron ran forward. The Plagued Ones didn't try to attack him, but Terron didn't question it. He needed to get to his friends and get out of this cave. He plowed through the cloud of creatures, swiping his weapons forward as he purged his path of the demons.

"_Don't do this, Terron."_

"_Terron, you deserve better than a broken victim, an outcast feral, and an incompetent child."_

"_Come with us… to your new home."_

"_Don't stay here with these Pokémon. Our home is a much better place."_

"_Why do you resist the hospitality we offer you? We only want to help you." _

"_**SHUT UP!" **_Terron cried.

Terron reached into his bag and exchanged his bone clubs for a dozen bone thorns. He threw them all in different directions, watching them pierce through entire lines of Plagued Ones. He quickly got back one of his bone clubs from the bag as he ran out of the room.

_**VIP!**_

Terron looked back to find that Impetus was with him and mostly unharmed, though she was clearly terrified by what was surrounding them. As soon as she appeared, the Plagued Ones lunged at her with mouths wide open.

"Impetus! Fire your Swift at those enemies!" Terron ordered. "And don't stop until it's safe!"

Impetus didn't hesitate. She spat out a barrage of star-shaped energies from her maw at the oncoming creatures. She fired them in every direction she could as the duo retrieved the Light Ball that was still waiting in the main tunnel. Once Terron had grabbed it, they charged into the room they last saw Zekra and Syn in.

Upon coming inside, they found Syn by himself, backed up against a wall. Tears were streaming down his face as he lashed out at the Plagued Ones surrounding him with his vines. With every smack of his vines, a single Plagued One disappeared, but another was quick to replace it.

Terron threw himself into the swarm encasing Syn, carving out a small opening with his club. Even as he brushed up against the untouched Plagued Ones, not a single one tried to attack him. They would attempt to grab him, but Terron easily got out of their grasps with a quick swing of his trusty bone.

"Terron!" Syn cried once he saw the Cubone. "What are these things?! Make them go away!"

"They're things called Plagued Ones!" Terron answered before realizing something. "Where's Zekra? She was with you, wasn't she?"

"I don't know!" Syn said fearfully. "She just started going crazy when these things started showing up and ran away!"

Terron frowned as he grabbed Impetus and made her stand against the wall next to Syn. He then stood directly in front of them and served as a barrier between them and the Plagued Ones. The creatures, upon seeing this, stopped attacking and stared at the Cubone. Impetus and Syn also ceased their attacks.

"Why aren't they attacking?" Syn asked. "Why'd they stop?"

"I don't know," Terron replied. "But, I do know it has to do with me somehow. They don't want to hurt me for some reason. I don't know why, but I think their unwillingness is only thing that's keeping us alive…"

Syn gulped as he backed up further onto the wall. Impetus also seemed to grow uneasy at this thought.

"Syn, where did you see Zekra run off to?" Terron asked seriously.

"Umm, she went that way!"

Syn pointed down another tunnel that connected to their current room. Terron glanced over at the tunnel before looking back at the Plagued Ones. His eyes slightly narrowed as he backed into his companions.

"Alright, we're going to go get Zekra," Terron said. "If you want to live, listen to me very carefully."

Syn and Impetus gave their full attention to the Cubone.

"I'm going to act as a shield to you two since the Plagued Ones won't attack me," Terron explained. "Together, we're going to scoot along this wall and down the tunnel wall with me right here. That way, the Plagued Ones can't attack you two since I'm blocking all access to you. So, stay with me. Understand?"

"Yeah, I do," Syn replied. "But… can these things phase through walls? Because if they can… then your plan isn't going to work…"

"I can only hope they can't," Terron simply said. "But, I don't think they can. They're not ghosts."

Syn nodded in understanding. Terron took in a deep breath as he grabbed both of his companion's hands. He felt their paws grip around his.

The team slowly slid across the wall, managing to stay together as they made their way into the tunnel. The Plagued Ones steadily followed the group, keeping their eyes specifically on Terron. Yet, Terron kept a calm composure as he went along to find Zekra. If they could just find her, then they could leave the cave and hopefully, the Plagued Ones would stop attacking them. Terron wasn't really sure if leaving the cave would make the creatures go away, but it was the only escape idea he could come up with.

After travelling along the tunnel's side for a few agonizing minutes, Terron saw a hole in the ground near the wall. He could hear whimpering coming from within the hole.

"Everyone's going to die…" a voice said from within the hole. "I can't… stop them…"

The team crept up to the hole and Terron peered down inside. It went down about two feet before going into a downward slope based on what the Light Ball could show.

"Plagued Ones…" the voice continued to mutter. "They're here… with everyone here…"

"Zekra?" Terron asked, recognizing the voice.

"Terron?" the voice replied.

A Drilbur slowly stuck its head out of the slanted part of the tunnel and looked up at him. She seemed rather calm despite how scared she sounded.

"Zekra, we need to get out of here," he instructed. "Climb out of the hole and get behind me. Quickly!"

Zekra was just about to climb out of her hole, but then she saw the Plagued Ones near her.

For a moment, she became frozen in place, staring at them with wide eyes.

And then, Zekra lost it.

"_**IT'S THEM!" **_Zekra screamed at the top of her lungs. _**"THEY'RE GOING TO TAKE ME! I DON'T WANT TO DIE! NO! NO! NO! NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"**_

Zekra changed back to her true form and abruptly got out of her hole. She bolted down the tunnel where the creatures did not gather. The Plagued Ones swiftly chased after her, no longer caring about Terron and his group.

"Everyone!" Terron cried. "Abandon the plan of staying on the wall! Just follow me and attack every Plagued One you see! And stick together, no matter what!"

The Cubone ran after the Zorua, his friends staying right behind him. He reached into his bag and threw a few thorns at the cloud of monsters, slowly making a path to Zekra within the mass. Syn and Impetus continued to use their long-range attacks, helping in the process of eliminating the numbers of Plagued Ones.

A large tear formed in the swarm, allowing Terron to see Zekra. The creatures were closing in on her. There was no chance of escape.

Without even thinking, Terron burst through the hole in the swarm and leapt at Zekra. They tumbled along the floor as he grabbed onto her.

"_**LET GO OF ME!" **_Zekra shouted. _**"I HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE! LET ME GO!"**_

"Impetus! Syn!" Terron yelled. "Get against the wall! I'll get there in a second! Stay there and hold off the Plagued Ones!"

While he didn't see whether or not they followed his orders, Terron wasn't concerned with that. He had to get Zekra back to her senses. Though he had managed to stop the Plagued Ones from attacking her, she was desperately trying to get out of his grip.

"Calm down, Zekra!" Terron pleaded. "I'm trying to help you! Get ahold of yourself!"

Zekra refused to listen and bit down on his arm. Terron cried out in pain, but he refused to let go of her. He felt his blood leaking out of the bite marks.

"Zekra! We're going to die unless you cooperate!" Terron said. "Stop fighting!"

The Zorua didn't respond. Her mind was no longer functioning on logic. The only thing she wanted to do was to get away from everything. As soon as Terron saw the sheer terror in her eyes, he finally understood that. There was no way to reason with her. She was in full-out panic mode. Nothing could make her snap her out of it.

So, Terron did the only thing he could do to keep her safe.

Terron's club slammed into the back of Zekra's head, effectively knocking her out. She fell lifelessly into the Cubone's arms, twitching slightly. Terron removed her fangs from his arm and ran over to his other companions, who were firing stars and whipping vines at the Plagued Ones. Terron felt such bitter remorse for having to hurt his closest friend, but he knew it had to be done. There was no other option.

He tossed Zekra's unconscious body to Impetus, who clumsily caught the Zorua as she and Syn stopped attacking. Terron got in front of the three and held out his arms to act as a shield. The Plagued Ones ceased moving and gave the Cubone their ominous stares.

"Now that everyone's here," Terron started to say, "we need to get out of the cave. We'll scoot along the wall just like what we did earlier."

"But, will that really make these things go away?" Syn asked nervously. "I mean… won't they just follow us out?"

"I don't know," Terron said simply.

"Then how do we know that going outside will help us?!" Syn cried. "We're going to die, aren't we?"

"No one's going to die!" Terron snapped, making Syn flinch. "Just do as I say! We'll make it through this!"

"_No you're not," _an Onyx Plagued One said. _"Exiting this cave won't stop us. We'll follow you out of here and haunt you until you come with us. That Snivy speaks the truth. You can't escape us, Terron… false Cubone…"_

"Shut up!" Terron snarled. "I don't care what you have to say! I'm sick of your blabbing!"

"Terron, who are you talking to?" Syn asked reluctantly.

"The Plagued Ones," Terron said bluntly. "Who else?"

"But Terron… they're not talking."

Terron's heart stopped beating. He gave the Snivy a disturbed look, his eyes frozen open.

"You don't hear them?" the Cubone asked seriously.

"No…" Syn answered with a shake of his head. "They haven't said anything. They were just staring at you… and you started yelling at them."

Terron didn't know what to say. This… this had to be some kind of joke. He could hear the Plagued Ones so clearly. Of course Syn could hear them talking. He was just saying he couldn't to mess with Terron. Yet, the Cubone could see the truthfulness in the Snivy's eyes. There was no reason for this child to lie…

"Impetus, can you hear those things talking?" Terron asked cautiously.

The Mienfoo slowly shook her head. Terron mouth opened as if to say something, but no words came out. He didn't know what to say. What was he supposed to say?

_Why… why can't they hear the Plagued Ones? _Terron thought as he became overcome with dread. _This isn't right. Why? Why can't they hear them? Why is it only me?_

"_Terron, don't keep us waiting here for you," _the Onyx said. _"There's nothing to worry about. You're safe with us. Why won't you listen to our words? Is it because of what your Fellowship told you about us?"_

"Why am I the only one who can hear you?!" Terron suddenly shouted at the creatures. "You won't attack me… you keep trying to get me to come to you on my own will… _**WHY?!**_ What makes me different than my friends?! _**WHAT MAKES ME SO SPECIAL?!**_"

"_You don't know why?" _a Pancham asked skeptically.

"Why would I know?!" Terron retorted. "Answer the questions! You're just like that voice in my head who won't answer my questions!"

"_So… you really don't know," _the Pancham stated blankly. _"How unusual. Never thought it was possible to forget… even if you've been plagued with amnesia. So that's why you're so unwilling to come with us… human."_

Suddenly, all of the Plagued Ones' eyes glowed brightly. They slowly glanced toward the tunnel that would exit the cave, their eyes gradually dimming back to normal.

"_Time… to return…" _all the Plagued Ones said simultaneously in a monotone.

And then, without another word, they all flew toward that direction and left the cave. The team watched anxiously as the creatures swept past them. That is… except Terron. He ran after the disappearing Plagued Ones, screaming frantically.

"_**GIVE ME MY ANSWER**_**!"** Terron cried. _**"WHY DO YOU THINGS WANT ME SO MUCH?! WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ME?!"**_

The Plagued Ones didn't answer. Terron continued to cry out to them and chased them. Yet, it was all in vain. For as soon as the Plagued Ones left the cave, they went into the sky and disappeared into the distance. Terron, realizing he couldn't do anything, collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily as his teammates caught up to him.

They were quick to join him in collapsing. The entire group lay there, all suffering from physical and emotional fatigue, no one able to move a muscle. All they could do was stare up at the sky where they last saw the Plagued Ones.

* * *

After remaining on the ground for an hour, the team finally gained the strength to get up. Tiredly, the three Pokémon sat up and glanced at one another. After seeing that they were all okay, they brought their attention to Zekra, who was still out of it.

"When do you think she'll wake up?" Syn asked.

"I don't know," Terron answered. "I really don't."

Syn let out a melancholy sigh as he closed his eyes. He looked toward the sun and took in its warm rays.

"Can you tell me what those things were inside the cave?" Syn asked. "You said they were Plagued Ones, but I've never heard that name before. What are they?"

Terron stuck his bone club into the ground and used it as a support to rest his arms and head on. He began to explain everything he knew about the Plagued Ones, such as how they swept the land of Shiron at any given time to unleash death upon all those who come. He went on to say that no one knew what the Plagued Ones were or why they were killing everybody. The most important details about these creatures were known by no one.

"A leader of mine once told me that he thinks the Plagued Ones create Mystery Dungeons by fusing with the environment," Terron continued. "It's just a theory, but I think it might be true. It would explain why everything in there is trying to kill you; they mimic the actions of the Plagued Ones. Of course, it doesn't explain why they were in that cave when Dreaded Cavern isn't a Mystery Dungeon. Unless they were getting ready to turn that place into a Mystery Dungeon…"

Terron grimaced at the thought.

"How come you and your leaders know so much about these Plagued Ones, yet no one else does?" Syn then asked. "I'm sure if those things were going around killing everybody, then more Pokémon would know."

"Because the Fellowship's true purpose is to eliminate those things," Terron answered. "As for why no one else knows about the Plagued Ones, it's because the Fellowship hides those things' existence from the public. If everyone knew about them… there'd be mass hysteria. Sometimes, lying is the only option you have if you want to protect others."

Syn gave Terron a long stare. No words were exchanged between them.

"… then why are you telling me about those things?" the Snivy asked after some time. "If you're supposed to keep them a secret, then why are you going against your organization's orders?"

"Because you saw the Plagued Ones with your own eyes," Terron answered grimly. "I'm not going to lie to you when you clearly saw them. You deserve to know the truth. However, I'm going to ask that you don't tell anyone else about what you saw. It's a Fellowship rule you have to follow. Do you understand?"

Syn reluctantly nodded. Terron sighed as he glanced at the ground and tapped his paws against his club. Many thoughts were going through his mind at the moment, but he wasn't sure which ones to focus on. All of them seemed vitally important.

"What were the Plagued Ones saying to you?" Syn suddenly asked.

"They were trying to get me to come with them," Terron said blandly. "And, I almost did go with them. Something about them was so inviting. I still don't understand what it was, but their words were just so tempting… but thankfully, I was able to snap out of it. After that, they started saying things that they really shouldn't know about me. It's like they knew who I was."

"What were the things they knew?" Syn asked.

"I can't tell you that," Terron said with a shake of his head. "That's a personal secret. Sorry."

The Snivy frowned in disapproval, but he didn't question Terron. Terron closed his eyes and imagined the fiery land he was called to not long ago. He envisioned himself standing upon the small piece of land among the lava pool.

_You were calling out to me… other me, if that's who you truly are. _Terron mentally said to the unknown being, despite not knowing where it was. _You prevented me from getting taken by the Plagued Ones. But, why? Why did you help me? _

There was no answer. The Cubone waited in his fantasy world, wanting to see if anyone would appear. Yet, after minutes of waiting, no one came. No voices filled his thoughts.

_Of course I don't get answers…_

Terron opened his eyes and came back to reality. He glanced over at Zekra, who showed no signs of waking up soon. Upon seeing this, the Cubone got up and looked toward the path to Lavender Town.

"We should get going," Terron said. "We can't wait for her to get up. We're wasting time. Besides, I don't want those Plagued Ones coming back. There's a good chance they might."

Terron picked up Zekra and handed her over to Impetus. Once Zekra was in good hands, Terron pointed toward the trail with his club.

"We only need to walk two more hours," the Cubone announced. "Let's tough out these last hours. And then, Syn, you can finally relax when we get there."

Syn didn't reply.

The three then headed down the trail, all remaining in silence as they walked. Their journey was finally coming to an end.

* * *

After two hours passed, the team finally saw a city in sight. It was still quite a ways from where they stood, but its distinct outline was still seeable. Terron, for the first time in a while, felt relief upon seeing civilization. His heart lightened up as the team picked up the pace and hurried toward the town.

"We're finally here," Terron said pleasantly. "Finally… after all we went through."

And then… he noticed something was very wrong.

Terron picked up his speed, feeling panic settle into his heart. He rushed into the city and abruptly stopped once he got past the entrance. His friends were quick to follow after him. They were about to ask what was wrong, but they soon saw it for themselves.

There were no Pokémon wandering through the streets. The entire city was vacant. There were still buildings throughout the town, not damaged at all, but not a single Pokémon seemed to be in them. Everything was completely silent…

"Where is everyone?" Terron asked as he looked around. "This… this is Lavender Town, right? It has to be! I mean, the map said it's right here…"

"And the sign right there says 'Welcome to Lavender Town' too," Syn pointed out. "So yeah, this is the place."

"But where did everyone go?" Terron asked no one in particular. "How long has it been like this? Why would-"

Suddenly, a door to a house creaked open. Someone was coming out of their house. Terron was about to call over to them, but he stopped when he saw who was really leaving the home.

It was a Plagued One in the form of a Bulbasaur.

Another door opened, and out came another Plagued One. Then another Plagued Ones came out of a home. And another. And another…

Soon, there were at least thirty of the creatures standing outside of buildings. They didn't seem to notice the group of children standing at the entrance of town, yet the mere sight of seeing them again was unnerving. Terron and Syn became frozen in place while Impetus abandoned Zekra and took off from the town. Terron didn't blame her for such an action.

The various Plagued Ones remained where they were, glancing around at one another. And then, all at once, they took off into the skies.

Even after every last one of them went away, the Cubone and Snivy found they still couldn't move. They had been so certain that they were going to be attacked once more. The fear would only leave their hearts at such a painfully slow rate.

"Tell me again why you guys were supposed to bring me to this awful place," Syn whimpered.

Terron's eyes slowly looked toward the Snivy.

"Your parents said you wanted to visit some friends here," the Cubone answered. "But… it looks like your friends are all dead now. This town has been overrun by Plagued Ones… that's why no one's here."

"But I don't have any friends in this town," Syn said.

Immediately, Terron's mind put the pieces together and started to understand what was going on about Syn's parents. It all made sense now. And yet, he needed one last question to confirm his suspicions.

"Syn… your parents never told you where you were going, did they?" Terron asked.

"No… they just said I was going to a special place with you guys," Syn said. "They didn't want to tell me because they said it was a surprise. I guess that place was Lavender Town. But… why here? No one's here anymore. Terron, why are we here?"

The Cubone didn't say anything.

"Terron! Answer me!" Syn cried. "Why did my parents want me to come here?!"

"… we need to get back to Pecha City," Terron said.

"Why?!" Syn demanded.

Terron still wouldn't answer the question. He walked over to Zekra and carefully picked her up. Just as he did, she started to squirm. Terron set her back down and watched as she slowly opened her eyes.

"Terron?" she asked in a quiet voice. "Terron… where am I?"

"Lavender Town," the Cubone answered blandly. "But now, we're going to the nearest city so we can fly back to Pecha City."

"Did we drop off Syn already?" Zekra asked. "I don't remember us doing that. In fact, I don't remember ever walking there…"

"Terron! Why won't you answer me?!" Syn yelled. "Why did we come here?"

"Terron, what's going on?" Zekra asked. "What happened to me?"

The Cubone started to walk away, heading for a city he could see from here. It looked like it would take another three hours just to get to that one, but Terron didn't care. He just wanted to get to a Drifblim Transportation since they were in practically every city. Syn and Zekra ran after him, demanding answers from him, but never once did he respond. Even after Impetus reunited with them, he didn't acknowledge her presence with anything more than a wave.

* * *

**Pecha City**

After arriving at the city that had been called Sol City, the team found that the place was still occupied by Pokémon. It hadn't been attacked by Plagued Ones. With that acknowledged, they eventually found the Drifblim Transportation and flew out of the town. Thankfully for them, they had brought some money to pay for Syn's flight. It only cost about fifty Poké, but Terron still wished they didn't have to pay for the fee. After all, the team didn't have that much money.

By the time the four made it to Pecha City, the sun was very low in the sky. Night would upon them soon, and they still had to take a flight back to Aurora Town. They wouldn't get back to the Fellowship for quite a while. Yet, none of that mattered at the moment.

The group treaded through the streets until they arrived at Syn's home. Once they made it there, Terron went up to the door and banged his bone club into the door repeatedly.

"Open the door!" Terron yelled, his voice seething with bitterness. "I know you're both here! Open up!"

There was no answer. Terron growled under his breath. He took out his other bone club from within the bag and began bashing the door down. Syn and Zekra tried to pull Terron away from the house, but he wouldn't move. He continued to ram his bones into the door.

"Terron! Stop!" Zekra cried. "Why are you trying to break into their house?! They're not home!"

"I'm breaking in because I have a question to ask them," Terron said gravely as he gave her a dark expression. "And that question is…"

He rammed a bone into the door one last time, causing it to slam wide open.

"… why they're abandoning Syn," he finished.

Zekra and Syn lost their grip on the Cubone as they stood there in disbelief. Terron hastily entered the house and tried to find Syn's parents. But, as he looked around, he realized that no one really was home. Syn's parents had left, and by the looks of how many of their possessions were missing, it seemed they weren't coming back.

The rest of the Pokémon reluctantly entered the house and were able to see exactly what Terron saw.

"Since I didn't answer your questions earlier, I'll answer them now that I know for sure, Syn," Terron said.

The Cubone glanced at the Snivy with a grimace.

"Your parents abandoned you," Terron explained. "For some reason, they didn't want you anymore and they decided to get rid of you. So, they hired the Fellowship to take you on a fake escort mission, where they'd drop you off with us and give us a fake assignment while not telling you anything at all. You were never going to be going anywhere; you were going to be stuck with the team that came to get you. Lavender Town was just a place they chose so they had time to get out of Pecha City. I don't think they knew the place was empty, but even if there hadn't of been, it all would have been the same. We would have figured out that you had no purpose coming to Lavender Town and would have brought you back home… only to find your parents gone."

Syn slowly shook his head in disbelief. Tears formed in his eyes as he mouthed out the word "No".

"I should have noticed the signs," Terron said regretfully. "It was when your mom rushed us out of the house that I should have seen the problem. She was far too hasty to let you go…"

"_**No!"**_

Terron cringed at the sudden yelling. The team looked at the Snivy to find that he was trembling. Tears streamed down his face.

"_**No! You're lying!" **_Syn cried. _**"It's… it's all a lie!"**_

"Syn…" Zekra said quietly.

She slowly approached the child. The Snivy backed away from her.

"_**MOMMY AND DADDY WOULD NEVER LEAVE ME!" **_Synergy wailed. _**"YOU'RE WRONG! I'M GOING TO FIND THEM! YOU'LL SEE THAT YOU'RE WRONG!"**_

Syn covered his eyes with his hands as he ran out the door, his shrill cries filling the air. Terron and Zekra were about to chase after him, but Impetus stepped in front of the door. She shook her head.

"Stay," Impetus said. "Leave Syn alone."

Terron and Zekra's jaws dropped at the sound of Impetus talking. Her voice sounded a bit unnatural due to her not speaking before, but it still showed such gentleness and maturity. They stared at her in disbelief.

"Impetus… you can talk now?" Terron asked.

"Yes. No," Impetus said.

"I see; you can only talk a little bit," Terron said thoughtfully. "That's fine. At least you're learning. But, I don't really think leaving Syn alone is a good idea. He's still just a kid, and he might hurt himself."

"Leave alone," Impetus said yet again. "Wait."

Terron let out a sigh.

"You're not going to move even if we say no, are you?" Terron asked.

Impetus shook her head. Terron glanced over at Zekra. She nodded reluctantly, seeing that leaving Syn be was the best option for now. With nothing else they could do, the two sat down and waited for Syn's return… if he ever chose to come back at all.

Several minutes of silence went by. Impetus was still standing at the door, making sure the other team members didn't go after Syn. Terron and Zekra hadn't moved at all.

"Terron, will you tell me what happened to me?" Zekra asked after so long. "You know, at the cave. All I remember is fighting that Geodude with Syn and then everything goes blank. Do you know what happened?"

The Cubone glanced at the ground for a moment before he closed his eyes. The words the Plagued Ones spoke about Zekra rang in his mind. He didn't want to believe they were right, but all of their other words about him had been true. So surely, their information about Zekra was no doubt true.

Terron could no longer look at his friend the same way now that he knew.

"Terron?" Zekra asked again.

"I found you in a hole in the ground," Terron said blandly as he opened his eyes. "You were probably trying to hide when the Plagued Ones were coming to get us. After I found you and you saw the Plagued Ones, you started going crazy and ran away from me. I tried to calm you down, but you wouldn't listen. So, I had to knock you out to get you out of the cave. And then after that, we went to Lavender Town and saw it was overrun by Plagued Ones. And then just as we were leaving, you woke up."

"There… there were Plagued Ones?" Zekra asked fearfully. "We… survived? How?"

"I don't know," Terron said lowly. "I don't know."

Zekra was at a loss for words. There was silence between them as Zekra contemplated the revelation.

"You and I… we're friends, right?" Terron suddenly asked.

"Y-Yeah," Zekra replied, surprised by the strange question. "Of course. Why wouldn't we be?"

"I'm different than your other friends, right?" Terron asked rather than answered.

"Yeah, you are," Zekra said oddly. "You're a human. I don't think I've had any other friends that are like that. So you're special. Why do you ask?"

"… Just wondering if I'm still different than other Pokémon," Terron answered. "I can't really tell if I'm becoming more like a Pokémon."

"Well I think you are," Zekra said with a small smile. "So don't worry about it."

Terron nodded slowly, but didn't say anything. He felt a nagging sensation, telling him to directly ask Zekra whether or not she actually saw him as a replica of her other friend, but he didn't have the nerve to. Silence once again resumed.

After about half an hour passed, Impetus finally moved out of the doorway. Terron and Zekra stood up at the same time as a certain Snivy came inside. His eyes were red from crying so much, but at least all of his tears were gone. His tail dragged along the ground as he came up to the two. He stopped in front of them, refusing to make eye contact. Yet, they could see that his eyes were dull with depression.

"I'm back," Syn said, no emotion behind his voice. "I… I didn't find them. But, it's okay. I won't cry anymore. I feel better."

"You sure?" Zekra asked gently.

"Yeah," Syn said blandly.

"If you say so," Zekra said with a melancholy frown.

"So what are you going to do with me now?" Syn asked.

"Well, I'm sure the Fellowship could find you a new home," Terron replied. "They have a lot of connections. I'm sure they'd manage. We'd just have to explain what happened."

"Will my new family just be some random family I've never met before?" Syn then asked.

"… Yeah, they will," Terron said. "I'm afraid that's how it's going to be. Unless you have other relatives; then they might send you to them."

"I don't know any of my other family members," Syn answered dully. "No one told me about them. I don't know where they are."

Terron sighed, feeling more depressed than he had been already thanks to the day's events.

"Then I guess you'll be going to someone completely different," Terron stated.

Syn didn't say anything. He closed his eyes and seemed to hold back more tears. The Cubone wanted to say something comforting, but nothing helpful came to mind. There was nothing that could cheer up this child.

"Let's just get going, Syn," Terron said uneasily. "We have a long flight back to Aurora Town."

Syn still didn't reply, yet slowly started to walk out of the door. Terron and the rest of the team followed, misery filling all of their hearts, except for Impetus, for she didn't understand why everyone was depressed.

* * *

**Aurora Town**

Hours later, the team and Syn stood in front of the Fellowship, seeing all of the cauldrons' fires light up the night. Several dimmer lights from inside could be seen where they stood. While the sight might have been fascinating to Syn, the Snivy didn't seem to even notice it now. He was absently staring at nothing.

"Well, this is the place," Terron said glumly. "Hopefully one of the leaders is still awake."

The team sluggishly headed for the entrance. All anyone wanted to do was get a good night's rest, but they knew they had a more important task to do first. Syn was their responsibility, and they needed to take care of his needs before theirs.

"Wait," Syn abruptly said.

The team stopped and turned back around to face him. He still hadn't moved from his spot.

"What is it?" Zekra asked.

Syn slowly approached the three before stopping right in front of them. He looked up at them, his eyes no longer filled with sadness. There was a glimmer of hope in his eyes now.

"Can you let me be part of your team?" he asked.

"What?!" Terron and Zekra gasped.

The two took a moment to compose themselves.

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Terron said. "I mean, what we do is dangerous."

"Besides, it's hard work," Zekra added. "There's times where we feel the load's too much, and we're older than you."

"I don't want to be in a family full of Pokémon I don't know," Syn explained. "I want to be with Pokémon who were nice to me and helped me and protected me when I was in danger. Even if they have risky jobs, I still want to be with those friends. I want to stay with those friends… and have them be my new family. A family full of friend… is the best kind of family I'd ever want."

Syn smiled, showing remnants of his old cheery self. The team members and the Snivy stared at one another wordlessly. A couple of minutes passed before Zekra finally broke the silence.

"Well, you've shown potential," she said. "And, hanging around you was nice. In fact, traveling with you felt so natural, like you were already a team member. Sure, you're a kid, but I think you'd be helpful to us. You've proven yourself to us. What do you think, Terron?"

Terron didn't need to think long about his answer.

"You know, it's funny; we just got Impetus as our third member not long ago," he said. "When we made her a member, we stood near this very spot. And now… we're doing the exact same thing with you."

"You're going to let me join you?" Syn asked eagerly.

"Yeah," Terron said with a small smile. "Welcome to our team, Synergy."


	22. Chapter 21: A New Task

**Chapter 21**

**A New Task**

* * *

Shortly after making Syn a member of Team Vendetta, he was brought to Emdox to be registered and explained what happened with Syn. When Emdox figured out Syn wanted to be a member, the Xatu was rather hesitant to the idea. He tried to convince Syn to reconsider his options, but Syn remained firm in the idea of being part of the Fellowship. So, knowing he couldn't change the Snivy's mind, Emdox registered Syn and made him an official member of Team Vendetta. The Snivy was baffled at how the marking process worked and was a little scared, but he didn't resist getting the mark unlike Impetus. He was mostly cooperative despite thinking the process would hurt, and even had his mark become multi-colored to make it unique.

After doing that, the team told their experience about the Plagued Ones to the Xatu and how Lavender Town had been taken over by such creatures. While the report of the encounter was indeed troubling to the old bird, the shock came when he learned that the Plagued Ones could speak. He said that he had once encountered them and never did he hear any sort of thoughts coming from them. He had always figured they were mindless beings.

What the team didn't reveal, however, was that Terron was the only one who could hear the Plagued Ones talking. Terron had made it sound like everyone on the team could hear them talking. Every time Syn tried to disagree with that statement, Terron would quickly cut him off and get his mind on something else. The Cubone knew it was probably a good idea not to let Emdox know about his "talent". Thankfully for Terron, Emdox never figured out his secret.

Shortly after that, the team was informed that they had failed their mission since they technically never escorted Syn and left him there. The team asked if they could get an exception due to the circumstances with Syn's parents, yet Emdox said that there wasn't a way to change it. Afterwards, he dismissed the team and let them get their rest.

Continuing their duties as Fellowship members was tough after their traumatizing day, but they learned to endure. They continued to complete other missions, mostly ones at the "C" hazard level to prepare for another "B" level assignment.

Yet, even as they kept moving forward with their lives, and had success with their various missions, none of Team Vendetta's members felt the happiness they once knew. None of them saw the world as they used to again.

Three weeks later, it was still the same for the team. Everyone had managed to find a way to put up a façade of happiness, but none of them were truly feeling the same way on the inside.

Terron now stood in the gym's ground-type chamber, tensely watching as a spinning Tunra prepared to bulldoze the Cubone. He held a dragon bone in each hand, trying to decide what would be the best way to stop this attack. He had so many options available, but he couldn't figure out which one of those ideas was best.

Just as the Donphan was about to flatten him, Terron quickly held up both his clubs and blocked the oncoming attack. Just like last time, Tunra remained spinning in place, only being held back by Terron's bones. The Cubone dug his feet into the ground as he felt Tunra's power increase. He was slowly being driven backwards.

"You'd better think of something before I roll over you," Tunra warned. "You can't keep me like this forever, as I'm sure you've learned from your other experiences."

Terron cringed at the memories of being run over. No matter how much it happened, it was always just as painful as the first time. Fueled by the desire not to be crushed, Terron worked to accomplish what he had been trying to do for a long time.

The Cubone clutched his weapons tighter as he pushed the Donphan to the side with all his might. He anticipated getting run over anyway, as he failed at his goal many times, but Terron still tried to fling his teacher into the wall.

Terron saw his teacher get flung a couple feet away, but it wasn't good enough. The Donphan was coming right back for him. Terron was about to block the attack, but he came up with a different idea. He didn't know if it would actually work, but it was better than trying the same thing over and over again.

The Cubone put one of his bones in his mouth as he gripped onto the other bone with both hands. As the Donphan closed in on him, the Cubone swung his bone forward. Dragon bone met rolling Donphan, and for just a moment, neither went anywhere. The two remained in place as dust kicked up all around them.

But then, Tunra was suddenly sent flying backwards through the air.

_**CRASH!**_

The Donphan slammed into the wall on the other side of the room. He fell to the ground ungracefully, groaning at the sudden impact. Terron remained where he was, keeping his stance in case his teacher should try to attack again.

"Congratulations, Terron," Tunra said with a weak smile. "You've finally managed to meet my expectations. You've proven your strength. Now, I can teach you how to use my ground techniques."

"Really?" Terron asked with wide eyes.

"Yes," Tunra said as he got back to his feet. "I believe you're ready. Now, let's begin your new training."

The Donphan approached Terron before stopping a few feet away from in. He looked upon the Cubone, wearing a proud expression.

"I believe I'll start by teaching you a favorite ability of all ground-types," Tunra said. "It's quite destructive in power if you have the proper amount of strength, which you have plenty of. Allow me to teach you the technique commonly known as Earthquake."

The Donphan proceed to jump up a foot into the air. When landed a second later, the entire room shook violently. Terron attempted to remain standing, but the tremors were quick to topple him over. His head hurt as the quake continued for several more seconds, filling his ears with the loud rumbling sound.

When the shaking stopped, Terron weakly got to his feet, still feeling shook-up by the earthquake. He held his head in his hands as he tried to see straight again.

"Ugh, it gives me such a headache," Terron moaned.

"Yes, that is their intended purpose," Tunra stated. "And also, to knock down opponents. It's a very useful technique, but it has its drawbacks of course. For one, you might actually hurt yourself if you don't learn to properly use it. If you were to use it in a cave full of stalactites, the stalactites might fall and impale you, should you stand directly below one. And then finally, you'll hurt everyone around you if you use this power. Your enemies and your allies will all be hurt. That is, unless they can fly or levitate."

Terron rubbed his head as his headache went away. Once the pain was gone, he looked at Tunra curiously.

"There's no way I can prevent my friends from getting hurt?" Terron asked. "Besides learning to fly?"

"Afraid so," the Donphan said with a sigh. "It's the cost of such a powerful technique. Every powerful technique has a drawback, whether it be the need to rest after using it, or becoming injured by using it. There are a couple of exceptions, but they are rare."

"I see," Terron said. "Well, I would like to learn how to make earthquakes since I may need to use them, so please teach me how to make them."

"Very well then," Tunra said with a smile.

* * *

An hour later, Terron exited the chamber with the ability to make tremors in his possession. The Cubone had learned it in the span of about ten minutes, which apparently was the average time it took for a ground Pokémon to learn the move. What took up the other fifty minutes, however, was Tunra attempting to teach Terron another power. This power apparently made fissures form in the ground and shoot up strange energy from the cracks. Much unlike learning Earthquake, Terron wasn't able to succeed in mastering this ability. In fact, he wasn't able to use _any_ part of the ability.

He couldn't make the fissures appear in the ground, let alone summon the strange energy from the dirt. After having no success with managing this, Tunra suggested Terron stop for today and come back the next day to try again. While Terron was reluctant to stop, he saw it was the best thing to do.

Terron wandered into Novus's chamber, where he found the Quilava staring up at his Reshiram statue. Impetus was sitting next to him, also gazing up at the statue with curiosity.

"Reshiram," Impetus said.

"Yes, that's his name," Novus replied. "You're doing well to memorize the names of all the great beings. Every being I have in this room is important to Pokémon. They are the ones who offer Pokémon hope and gave them salvation in the ancient past. Though none see the gods or legendaries except for the rare few, Pokémon continue to believe in their existence. They worship these deities and aspire to be just like them."

"You say… no one believes Reshiram," Impetus said, talking slowly to find the right words. "Why not him?"

Novus frowned hard.

"That is because no one seems to remember his importance," Novus said bitterly. "He and another dragon, Zekrom, used to watch over the land. They guarded it and protected it from harm. They cared for the creatures of the land. But one day, the two disappeared and were never to be seen again. Everyone slowly forgot of their existence, and very soon, the deeds the dragons had done were thought to have been accomplished by the other great beings. Their guardian status were given to the three Ho-Oh created. The knowledge of their immense power were given to the three birds that Lugia watches over. Every deed they accomplished… was no longer done by them according to Pokémon now. There are some Pokémon who can still remember the truth, such as myself, but the rest of the world forgets. They forget Reshiram… and they forget Zekrom…"

Novus cast his eyes down as he let out a sigh to calm down. It looked like he wanted to say more, but he was stopping himself from doing so.

"I believe," Impetus said.

"Yes, believe in them," Novus muttered. "That's all that can really be done for now."

The two continued to sit there, staying before the large statue. Terron went up to the two, where they were quick to notice him.

"Welcome back, Terron," Novus said. "How did your training go?"

"Fine, fine," Terron said nonchalantly. "Learned how to make earthquakes. I'm trying to learn how to use this odd technique called Earth Power, but it's not going too well. Hopefully I'll learn it soon. But anyway, thanks for keeping Impetus here while I was training. I'd just take her with me to training, but I'm still worried about the feral prejudice."

"Watching Impetus isn't a problem for me," Novus replied. "Even when I train with others, she waits patiently for the other Pokémon to leave. And now that she can speak her thoughts more clearly, she and I can have conversations. I can tell she's still part feral, but she still makes better company than some non-feral Pokémon I know. Though, I'm afraid I might not be able to keep watching her soon."

"Why's that?" Terron asked.

"The ones who run this gymnasium are considering the option of replacing me with someone else," Novus said sadly. "They say they've found a better mentor to the fire-types of this city. I have yet to meet the one who may replace me, but I've been told it will be a Charizard, a rather popular figure among fire-types. Which, when thinking about it, gives a reason for why they'd want a Charizard instead of a Quilava. They're considered more powerful than Quilava, but I still believe it's partially because everyone loves Charizard. More members will flock here if there's such a Pokémon."

Impetus and Terron became glum at the news.

"That's too bad," Terron said. "What are you going to do if you get replaced?"

"I'm not sure," Novus admitted. "I know I have many places I could go to, but I'm not sure which I would go to. Besides, I don't want to worry over it now. There's no guarantee I'll be leaving, and when there's no guarantee, I shouldn't have my thoughts be consumed about a departure."

"I guess," Terron shrugged. "If you say so."

The Cubone then looked over at Impetus.

"So I heard you were learning about legendary Pokémon," he said. "How was that going?"

"Good," Impetus replied. "I like all of them. I want to see the great beings."

"Maybe that'll happen one day," Terron said hopefully.

Having Impetus talk made Terron feel a sense of pride from within him. He felt he had accomplished a great task in having Impetus go from a feral to what she was now. She was truly growing. In fact, she no longer had to wear the Reunion Cape thanks to how much she came to understand the world.

Yet, despite all of the growth, there were things about Impetus that weren't changing. For one, she never seemed happy. Terron thought it was because she didn't know what emotions were, but that theory was eliminated quickly. Throughout the adventures the team had, Impetus would show many different emotions such as amusement when something funny seemed to happen or pity whenever her friends were hurt. Yet, she never showed any signs of being genuinely content in life.

Another thing that bothered Terron was that she didn't follow society's rules. Even after trying to teach the rules to her, she still wouldn't follow them. There were several times where the team would go to the market, and rather than pay for the items, Impetus would try to walk out the door with the items. Whether it was because she truly didn't understand the rules or just didn't want to follow the rules, Terron didn't know. He'd ask her why, but she'd always give him vague answers.

He hoped that one day, she'd outgrow these problems, so that she could fit into the civilian world. Until then, he'd stay with her and make sure she was safe from the negative impressions of her kind.

"Well, let's go get Syn and Zekra then," Terron said. "And afterwards, we can go get tomorrow's mission."

"Okay," Impetus said as she got to her feet.

"You two are Fellowship members?" Novus then asked, suddenly sounding interested.

"Yeah, all of us are," Terron explained. "We have the marks to prove it."

Terron and Impetus then showed their paws to the Quilava. He looked upon them curiously before nodding to himself.

"So you are," Novus stated. "That's interesting. I suppose it makes sense for why such young Pokémon would want to train here. Yes, interesting…"

"Well we're not _that_ young," Terron said. "But yes, we work there. You know the Fellowship?"

"Yes, I do," Novus replied. "I've never been a member, but I know what their purpose is. As in, their true purpose they try to hide from the public; Plagued One elimination."

Novus became very grim upon mentioning the creatures. Yet, before Terron could say anything, the expression disappeared. Novus smiled.

"Do not fret; the Fellowship's secret is safe with me," the Quilava assured. "I understand the importance of why it must be kept away from most Pokémon."

"Kay," Terron said awkwardly. "Well, guess I'll see you later then. Thanks for watching Impetus."

Novus gave a small wave as the two left his chamber.

The two then entered the grass chamber. This chamber was, as to be expected, covered in plants. Every part of the ground had blades of grass growing in it. Small trees and flowers were planted throughout the place, and sunlight shined down from an open hole in the ceiling. A shrub stood towards the front of the room, being in the shape of Celebi in mid-flight.

Syn was standing in the middle of the room, facing his mentor, a large Venusaur.

"Hey, I have a question," Syn said.

"What is your question?" the Venusaur asked.

"You know how every grass Pokémon has a plant inside their bodies?" Syn began to say. "Well, does that plant really have a mind of its own, or is it just us controlling it without knowing it? I thought the plant could do whatever it wanted for a while, but I'm really starting to wonder if that's true."

"The plant within you is a separate being, and yet it is not," the Venusaur answered.

"What?" Syn asked oddly.

The Venusaur slowly took out his vines and showed them to the Snivy.

"You and I both share the ability to summon a fraction of the plant within us and bring it into the outside world," the master explained. "Not every grass-type can. Yet, they still have the plant within them that serves them in different ways. To them, the plant is simply a different part of their body. For you and I, the plant can interact with the world in a more physical manner. So when we think of the plant, it is separate from us due to doing things without us commanding it to. The true answer, however, is that it is a combination of both answers. The plant lives inside your body. It is connected to every part of you. Your nerves give it orders, and in return for helping you, you provide nourishment for the plant. You and the plant depend on one another to survive. So based off this knowledge, you'd think that whenever the plant doesn't follow your orders, it's simply because you can't send the proper messages to it."

"Yeah… I guess," Syn said unsurely.

"But, this is wrong," the Venusaur continued. "In actuality, the plant is a separate entity. Though you two are connected, that doesn't automatically mean you'll always want the same thing. Sometimes, the plant doesn't want to follow your orders because it believes there is a better way. This happens to every grass-type, but it's only those like you and I who notice it the most. So, despite it being connected to you, it won't always listen to the commands you give it. In order to fix that problem, you have to understand the plant. Figure out what it wants and help it understand why you need its help. Listen to its unspoken words and it will listen to you."

"Listen to my plant talking?" Syn repeated. "Well, I've never heard it actually talk, but I think I get what you're saying."

Terron and Impetus stopped besides the two. Syn smiled when he saw his teammates.

"Hello," he said pleasantly. "I learned some cool stuff from Master Sage. Like how to use this thing called Leaf Blade."

"Huh, I didn't think Venusaur could learn that ability," Terron commented as he looked at Sage. "How'd you teach Syn that, if that's the case?"

"I have seen such an ability used many times," the Venusaur said. "I've seen it so many times, in fact, that the very process of how to use it has been etched into my mind. And so, I pass it on to all students who are capable of learning it, even if I cannot."

"Oh, okay," Terron said in understanding.

"Yep," Syn said. "So, since I guess Master Sage and I are done, then I guess we can get going."

The Snivy then turned to the Venusaur and gave a short bow.

"Thank you," Syn said. "I'll see you next time I come."

The three then left the chamber. As they walked, Terron glanced at the sigil etched into Syn's leaf hand. While its color scheme looked awesome to Syn, Terron thought it looked ridiculous.

Yet right now, the way the mark looked wasn't something Terron was focusing on. Instead, he was thinking about how Syn was a member now. When Syn first joined the team, he had been very dedicated to helping out. He gave his all in everything, whether it was in battle or helping with the shopping. He was very accepting of all the Fellowship's and team's ways, and didn't mind that Impetus was a feral once he was told the truth. He did all of that with a smile and was very useful to the team.

But, after a few days, his cheery complexion died down. He still tried to look happy, but Terron could see through the façade and saw the child's heavy heart. Whenever the team had to take care of a mission involving parents, Syn seemed to become depressed for the rest of the day. Other strange reactions occurred whenever anything reminded him of his past. One time, the team decided to visit a candy store. They had enough money, and they had a long day, so they figured they'd reward themselves. As soon as the group started picking out treats, Syn began to ramble about how his parents used to take him to candy stores once a week and how he always got the same treat every time. As soon as he mentioned this, Syn gave the team this stare that Terron could never forget: the stare a happy child gave to their loving parents.

Even now, after weeks had passed, Syn still gave Terron and Zekra that same look sometimes. His depression became less noticeable, but Terron could still see it at times. Terron even heard the child talking his sleep, muttering things about his old parents. Sometimes, the Snivy would be crying.

And so, after seeing all of this happen to their newest member, Terron wondered if letting Syn on the team was such a good idea. The kid was talented at his work, but that meant nothing if he was in so much pain. There were so many things that reminded the Snivy of his past when working at the Fellowship, and the stress this job made one deal with wasn't helping either.

But, Terron had made his decision, and trying to get rid of Syn would only do more harm than good at this point. The Cubone would have to live with this choice.

With Syn now in their company, the team went to go get the final member of their party. They entered the dark-type chamber and made their way into the room. Dim torches circled the room, offering an insufficient level of light. Nothing in this room was distinguishable to Terron. Even the statue of a Pokémon in the background couldn't be identified due to being cloaked in darkness. He had heard the room was shadowy so that dark-types could practice their ability to see in the dark, but he still found it bothersome.

Yet, despite the lack of sight, Terron could still hear two Pokémon scurrying around the room as they fought.

"Oh hey, Terron!" Zekra's voice called. "You're here! I'll be there in a second! Just let me finish up this battle!"

The sounds of clashing filled the air. Terron occasionally saw a quick blur of a figure dash by one of the lights, but he was never able to see who it was. In fact, he didn't even know what the teacher looked like. Despite all the weeks of Zekra training here, never once did Terron see the teacher. Of course, this was probably because Terron hardly went inside the room since he felt so vulnerable with the lack of light.

Just then, Terron saw Zekra land in front of the nearest torch to him. She looked over at the Cubone and the rest of the team.

"Hello," she said with a smile. "How's it going? Been a while since you guys came here. I'm usually waiting for you guys instead of the other way around."

"Yes, usually you are," Terron said.

"How'd your training go?" Syn then asked.

"Fine, fine," Zekra replied. "Master Arcanum was helping me with my illusion stuff. We're working on turning into Pokémon that aren't in front of me, yet I've seen before. I think it's going pretty well."

"Where is your teacher anyway?" Syn asked curiously.

Before Zekra could answer, another Pokémon came into the light where the Zorua was; an Absol. She glanced in the team's direction.

"I'm her teacher," Arcanum spoke. "You must be Terron, Impetus, and Syn. I've seen all of you a couple of times, but you haven't seen me. But I can't blame you; the shadows that fill this room cloud the vision of all except dark-types."

"Oh, I see," Syn said unsurely before thinking about something. "Hey, how are you teaching Zekra how to use her illusions when you're not a Zoroark or anything?"

"The ability to use illusions, despite being a power only known to the Zorua and Zoroark kind," Arcanum explained, "is in actuality, a power very similar to dark energy normally used by regular dark-types. Though the power is used in a different way, the ability still has the same principles behind it as any other dark power. That's why I can teach her how to improve her illusion abilities. But, I will admit, it would be preferable for a Zoroark to teach the ways of illusions. There are some things I cannot teach about the ability, such as how to manipulate the environment with the illusions. But, since I don't know of any Zoroark, my teaching methods will have to do for now if Zekra wishes to improve her abilities."

Syn nodded slowly. As he did, Zekra smiled at her mentor.

"Well thanks for helping me today," Zekra said. "I'll come back next time I can."

"Very well then," Arcanum replied.

Zekra then made her way over to the group and all of them exited out of the gym. With the four members now reunited, they went to go eat dinner. Once they managed to get ahold of their meals, they all sat down at a table and talked amongst each other.

"So, what kind of mission did you guys want to do tomorrow?" Zekra asked.

"I think it's better if we talk about that when we see the actual assignments," Terron stated.

"Well, what hazard level do you wanna do?" Zekra then asked.

"… Probably 'C' level as usual," Terron replied. "Think we need to wait just a little longer for another 'B' level mission."

"I think we're ready for a 'B' level mission, though," Zekra said. "I mean, we've had weeks to train since our last attempt at that. We've all gotten more powerful and learned more techniques."

"I guess," Terron shrugged. "We'll just see whatever's there. Let's just not talk about missions right now."

"Okay," Zekra said oddly. "Well… how'd all of your training times go? I don't think I got to ask you guys that."

"Mine was fine," Syn replied. "I learned how to use Leaf Blade. It's pretty cool, but I can tell why my kind have a hard time using it compared to Treecko and their evolutions. It's really hard to hit somebody with it if you don't move around the right way. But, I think I've figure out a way to be accurate with the attack. And now I'm trying to think of a way to make this attack part of a team attack."

"That's good to hear. Tell me when you come up with that idea," Zekra said pleasantly. "What about you, Impetus?"

"Talked with Novus," she replied. "He taught me the names of the great beings. They're all interesting, but I often wonder why some are considered great beings when they don't do anything very important. Like Latios and Latias. They don't do anything except fly around the world. But, great beings like Reshiram and Zekrom, who had an important role, are forgotten and become myths. I don't understand why this happens."

"I'm pretty sure Novus would know," Zekra said. "He seems pretty knowledgeable, so I bet he knows why. Soooo, Terron. How did things go for you?"

"They went fine," Terron said simply. "Learned a new move. That's it."

"Oh, I see," Zekra said awkwardly, not sure how to react to such a short answer. "Well that's… good."

"Yeah," Terron added quietly.

Terron had been like this to Zekra ever since the incident with the Plagued Ones. While he still talked with her, as he was doing now, he never wanted to talk for very long. Learning that Zekra might not even be his real friend broke something inside Terron. He didn't know for sure if this was true, but he found he couldn't talk to Zekra about it. He was scared to know the truth. If he knew for sure that Zekra really wasn't his friend…

Terron wasn't sure what would happen to him.

Zekra was about to ask something, but just then, she noticed a group of Pokémon coming into the cafeteria from the outside. No one seemed to notice them, but the rest of Team Vendetta brought their attention to the new Pokémon.

There were three Pokémon: a Flygon, a Rampardos, and a Grovyle. All of them seemed rather tired, but they managed to look happy despite this. This was especially true with the Flygon, whose grin seemed to be a permanent part of its face. The team watched as the new Pokémon got their meals from the Wigglytuff server and wandered around to find a seat. The Flygon flew high above the other two, zipping through the air despite its apparent weariness.

"Come on, you two!" the Flygon called. "I really want to find a spot to sit quickly! You guys are going even slower than usual!"

"That's because we just got back from a two month errand," the Rampardos moaned. "Of course we're going slow! We're exhausted!"

"Besides, you can fly," the Grovyle stated coolly. "Flying automatically makes you ten times faster than us."

"Whatever!" the Flygon said carelessly. "I'll just pick out a spot for us and wait for you guys then!"

As the dragon flew over various tables, he noticed Team Vendetta's table and how it still had quite a bit of room for others to sit in. Though, what he seemed to notice most was Terron. He stared at the Cubone curiously for a second before swooping down onto the table. He landed next to the open seats and looked upon the team.

"Don't think I've seen you four around here before," the Flygon said oddly. "You four new?"

"Yeah, we're Team Vendetta," Zekra said with a smile. "We joined last month."

"Ah, you joined while I was gone with Jade and Ragnor," the Flygon said thoughtfully. "Well then, that explains why I don't recognize you four. Well, if you don't mind, I'd like to sit here with my friends. What do you say?"

"Uh, sure," Zekra said awkwardly.

The Flygon's smile widened as he sat down and set his tray at the table. The four gave him odd looks as he ate, not quite sure what to think of the newcomer. His appearance was so random. As they tried to figure out what to think of the dragon, his other two companions came up to the table.

"Vantis, are you bothering our members again?" the Rampardos scowled. "You know not everyone can put up with your overly energized attitude."

"No, I _asked_ them if we could eat here before I made myself home," the one named Vantis assured. "I didn't barge in. Geez, you make it sound like I have no manners or something."

"Because sometimes you really don't…" the Rampardos grumbled.

"Wait, you said your name is Vantis." Terron said to the Flygon before looking at the Grovyle and Rampardos. "And… you two are Jade and Ragnor according to Vantis. Wait… are you guys part of Team Valor?"

"Why yes, we are," the Grovyle said pleasantly. "I'm guessing Len told you about us while we were gone. Sorry we weren't here when you became a part of the Fellowship. We had to go visit all the Fellowships and see how they're doing compared to us. Vantis probably could have gone by himself, but no one's really allowed to go on missions alone here in Aurora Town's Fellowship. So, Ragnor and I went with him since we're decent at traveling a long ways. But anyway, it's nice to meet you now."

Jade and Ragnor sat down at the table next to Vantis. Having a few of the leaders sitting at their table heavily reminded Terron and Zekra of the time Bane and Rayne visited them.

"So what are your names?" the Rampardos asked. "I'm Ragnor, and the Grovyle is Jade. And then you've obviously met Vantis already."

"Well, I'm Zekra," Zekra said before pointing to her teammates. "That's Syn, that's Impetus, and that's Terron, our leader."

"Ah, nice to meet you all," Ragnor smiled.

"Yeah, you're all so adorable!" Vantis added.

The Flygon then ruffled Zekra and Syn's heads playfully. Every member of Team Vendetta except Impetus found the comment and gesture to be awkward while the members of Team Valor found it humorous. Impetus, on the other hand, had a much different reaction. As soon as Vantis brought his hand close to her head and Terron's, she scowled.

"Don't touch me," she growled.

Vantis immediately withdrew his claw, startled by her hostility. He didn't even bother to mess with Terron due to by how distracted he was. Impetus got to her feet and went to go retrieve some more food. The three leaders stared at Impetus oddly.

"Sorry," Zekra said. "Impetus is a feral. She's getting better, but she still kinda acts like a feral at times. Like, she hates it when Pokémon besides us try to touch her. She still thinks they're trying to attack her."

"I thought there was something different about her compared to the rest of you," Jade replied. "But I see. I understand where she's coming from. I too, was once a feral. I acted just like that, but was a lot worse. I wouldn't even let my teammates look at me in the eye without giving them nasty looks. I always thought they were going to attack me whenever they made eye contact."

"Oh yeah, Emdox was mentioning you," Terron then said. "He was mentioning that you were a feral once, when we first got Impetus. How long did it take you to become a civilian, out of curiosity?"

"Hmm," Jade pondered. "Two months. Though, I've heard that sometimes, it can take up to six months. It all depends on the Pokémon and how you train them. I mean, I probably got out of my feral state so quickly because I had King and his… unique way of understanding me."

"Yeah, by basically forcing you to see your ways were wrong," Vantis said with a snicker. "He beat the daylights out of you to make you see that civilian tactics triumph feral tactics and that you'd die if you didn't change."

"I can still remember that day," Jade said. "I really thought I was going to die."

She shuddered at the thought.

"Anyway," Jade continued after the memory passed. "If you want to speed up the process, I suppose you can have her talk to me. I'm not exactly talented at convincing Pokémon, but since she and I are the same in a way, maybe she'll see some truth in my words. And if I can't do anything, well you can always ask King."

"We'll just stick with you," Terron said quickly. "But, not right away. You guys just got back, so I guess you can use a break for a while. I'll let you know when I can use your help."

Jade nodded pleasantly before she suddenly became very solemn.

"You're aware of how others view feral Pokémon, right?" she asked seriously.

"Yeah, we know Pokémon outside the Fellowship aren't exactly nice to feral Pokémon," Terron said sadly. "Impetus and I found out the hard way."

"There are some in the Fellowship who have a negative view of ferals, so don't trust everyone here with that information," Jade said. "But good. You know. That's important."

"Don't worry; we'll keep her safe," Syn assured. "We're good at hiding stuff."

* * *

After eating their dinner with the leaders and having various conversations, the team bid the adults farewell. The four now stood in front of the Bulletin Board, staring at all of the missions curiously. However, it was only Zekra and Syn that were reading the assignments. Impetus and Terron still couldn't understand footprint runes.

"You see any 'B' level missions?" Zekra asked curiously.

"Nope," Syn said. "Just a lot of 'A' and star stuff. And a few 'D' level ones."

"Hmmm keep trying," Zekra replied. "We've gotta try a 'B' level mission. We've been doing 'C' level for too long. We have to improve."

The two became silent and focused all their attention into finding the right mission. Terron and Impetus simply waited around, starting to feel tired. Just as their eyes started to close, Syn suddenly took out his vines and reached for a posting far above his reach. He ripped it off the board before bringing it down to the ground for everyone to see.

"Here's a weird mission that's 'B' level," the Snivy said. "It says we have to go get a bunch of evolution stones from this place. We just have to go there, pick them up, and bring them back here. And we get a reward of one thousand Poké! Awesome!"

"Wow, that really does sound like a cool mission," Zekra grinned. "What a lucky find."

"Yeah! Though, it says we're supposed to tell the leaders we got this assignment before we leave," Syn added. "They're supposed to give us some kind of special transportation since it's pretty far away. Weird."

"And where exactly _are _we supposed to get these stones from?" Terron asked. "The Drifblim Transportation is pretty fast, so where could it possibly be so that we have to go there another way?"

Syn scanned through the mission paper again before putting a vine on the word he was looking for.

"The Dusk Mines Fellowship," Syn replied.

Immediately, Terron's mind stopped working. The horrifying images of that place consumed his thoughts. In his mind, he could hear King's voice describing the place once more. Terron kept a straight face as dread filled him, but his reply expressed his thoughts very clearly.

"No, we're not going there," Terron said hastily.

"Aww, why not?" Syn whined. "It sounds like a cool place. Plus, it'd be nice to know what the other Fellowships look like."

"I just don't wanna go," Terron said.

Zekra stared at Terron for a moment before a sly grin appeared on her face.

"You're scared of that place, aren't you?" Zekra asked smugly.

"No!" Terron cried. "Of course not! Why would I be scared of another Fellowship?"

"I don't know," Zekra said, honest as can be. "But it's true, isn't it?"

Terron didn't say anything. He knew that Zekra didn't really understand his fear, since she had been occupied when King explained the Dusk Mines Fellowship. Yet, that didn't change the fact that Terron didn't want to go there. Zekra went up to the Cubone and stared at him.

"Don't be so scared," Zekra said softly. "It's just another Fellowship. Besides, you've got us in case anything goes wrong."

"Yeah!" Syn added.

"It's only somewhere different," Impetus said. "All Fellowships have the same purpose. They're not much different than us. They'd be exactly the same if it weren't for them being in different places with different creatures. Fear is unnecessary."

Terron let a sigh. There was no point in fighting his teammates. They all had points, and their peer pressure was proving too great to resist. It looked like Terron would have to deal with his dread.

"Fine, we'll go," Terron said quietly.

"Yes!" Zekra cried happily. "Well let's call it a night then, and we can tell Len about the mission in the morning."

She and Syn took off up the stairs, leaving behind Terron and Impetus. They showed no signs of waiting for the two of them. Terron let out another sigh as he slowly made his ways up the stairs.

"Why are you _really_ scared of that place?" Impetus asked.

Terron turned his head to find the Mienfoo hadn't moved. She was staring up at the Cubone, her eyes reflecting the gravity behind her question. There was no pity or curiosity; there was only solemnness. Terron stopped walking.

"Because according to King, that place is terrifying," Terron answered. "The leader, the members, the location, their practices… just their name is ominous enough! I don't want to go there and see all of that."

"Why didn't you say that to the others?" Impetus asked just as seriously.

"Because… I just can't," Terron said as he hung his head. "It's too hard. Explaining my secrets has become really difficult for some reason. I could do it before… but not anymore."

"So you can't tell your companions what bothers you, despite working with them all the time," Impetus verified, more to herself than Terron. "Though you're in pain… and telling them the truth would get rid of the pain… you don't tell them. You don't let the others see your pain… except me."

"You're different, Impetus," Terron reasoned. "Talking to you is like talking to myself. It's been like that since Zekra and I found you."

Impetus stepped onto the staircase and passed by Terron. She continued walking until she was a few yards away from the Cubone. Once she was, she stopped walking and stared at whatever was in front of her. She was quiet for a moment.

"… You civil ones don't make sense sometimes," Impetus said. "All of you are in pain… but you don't do anything to get rid of the pain. If you hurt, get rid of the pain. Why do all of you not understand such a simple concept?"

"Because this pain isn't like a physical pain, Impetus," Terron replied. "It's not that simple."

"Maybe you just make it too complicated," Impetus returned. "Many things about you civil ones are made too complicated. I still don't know why you do so many strange things when there's such a simple answer. It confuses me. But, not as much as a different question I've asked since the day I came here. I still haven't found the answer."

"What was the question?" Terron asked curiously.

"Why does everyone work together when no one gets along?" Impetus explained. "You all do everything together such as battling, eating, and walking, but all of you fight with each other. And yet, all of you stay together. At my old home, there was never anything like that. We work separately. When we fight, it is our enemy that we fight. Yet here… it's so different… everyone is working together, yet not getting along…"

"Because we're happy when we're together and it helps for battles," Terron said. "At least, we're supposed to be happy. I don't know about lately."

"Exactly why happiness isn't the right answer," Impetus said simply.

The Mienfoo went forward, climbing up the stairs without Terron. Terron stayed there for a while, thinking over everything Impetus had just said.

_Pokémon show their true personality to others. _Terron thought. _And if they can do that, then they probably share their problems too. So why can't I share what's going through my head? I could do it before as a Pokémon. I kept no secrets from my team. And now… I'm keeping so many things hidden from everyone. I can't tell Zekra about what the Plagued Ones told me, I can't tell Syn I'm human, I can't tell anyone except Syn and Impetus that I can talk to the Plagued Ones, I can't tell anyone about that voice in my head, and I can't even talk about how I feel to my own friends unless Impetus talks to me… _

He slowly trekked up the stairs and went to his room as he felt the pangs of his heart.

_Why can't I talk about what bothers me anymore? What's happening to me? _


	23. Chapter 22: Yimtri

**Chapter 22**

**Yimtri**

* * *

At dawn the next morning, after getting a decent breakfast, the team made their way to Len's office with their supplies. All of them were wide awake and feeling the rush of excitement. Today they were going to go on a special mission: a retrieval request to the Dusk Mines Fellowship. While Terron was still reluctant to go, Zekra and Syn were quite eager. They rambled on about what the place looked like as they walked, coming up with things such as it having ghosts transport you around or that the entire mine was decorated in precious gems. Their guesses never seemed to cease.

When the team got to the office, they found Éclair in the room rather than Len. The four gave her odd looks. Terron and Zekra hadn't seen her for quite some time, and Syn and Impetus had never really met her before. In fact, the only leaders those two met were Len, Emdox, Jade, Vantis, Ragnor, and Garter.

"Who are you?" Syn asked.

"I'm Éclair," the Ninetales replied. "I'm a member of Team Valor, one of your superiors. I'm the one who's taking Len's usual responsibility due to the fact that he has an errand to run. He should be back in a couple hours, however, if you wish to see him."

"We don't need to see Len specifically. Just one of you leaders," Syn said. "But, I get who you are now. I've just never seen you before. Nice to meet you, Éclair. "

"Thank you," Éclair smiled before she looked at Terron and Zekra. "I see you two have gained more members last time I checked on you two. I'm glad to see your numbers are increasing. Your team is surely growing stronger. Might I know the names of your new members? I haven't bothered to check your records and see for myself."

"Well, I'm Syn," the Snivy said with a smile.

"I see," the Ninetales said. "And what about you, Mienfoo?"

"I'm called Impetus," the Mienfoo answered simply. "At least, that's what I've been called since I came here. Before, I had no name. I was me. No one called me anything."

Éclair wasn't sure what to say. She blinked, thinking of a proper reaction.

"Impetus is a feral," Terron explained. "She sees things differently than other Pokémon, which is why she says odd things."

"I thought her speech reminded me of Jade before she became civil," Éclair remarked. "I see. Well then, I understand. I'm pleased to meet you, Impetus. I apologize for not understanding your explanation."

Impetus slowly nodded.

"Anyway, we came here because we're taking the Dusk Mines mission where we go pick up the evolution stones," Zekra said, trying to get everyone off Impetus's subject. "You guys are supposed to give us some special transportation, right?"

"Yes, we are," Éclair replied. "Give me a moment to retrieve your flight escort. Please wait here."

The Ninetales went out the room and went off wandering somewhere. The four waited patiently, not saying a word. Impetus and Syn looked around at the new room in their curiosity, but they remained rooted to their original spot as they did so.

After some time passed, Éclair finally came back with another Pokémon that the team was quick to recognize.

"Vantis?" Terron asked. "_You're _going to take us to Dusk Mines? Didn't you just get back from a trip?"

The Flygon flew toward Terron and stopped right in front of him. He hovered a foot off the ground despite not flapping his wings. It was at this moment that Terron saw the Flygon was wearing a red scarf around his neck that matched the shade of his eye lens. The Cubone wasn't sure if Vantis had been wearing that last night, but he was noticing it now due to how close the Flygon was to him.

"Well, I don't need _that_ much time to recover! I'm in top-shape!" Vantis said eagerly. "Also, Dusk Mines is about roughly two thousand miles away! You _need _to a quick flyer when it's that far away! I'm the fastest flyer in this entire Fellowship! Well, ours anyway. I know there's some other Fellowship that have Salamence, and they're pretty fast."

"Let us not forget the Oracion Village Fellowship, which has quite a few Dragonite," Éclair added. "They're the fastest of all Pokémon."

"That's a lie!" Vantis cried. "I'm much faster than those dragons! I've beaten them at races so many times!"

"Well, perhaps I should rephrase my statement," Éclair said with a huff. "Dragonite are the quickest of all Pokémon when it comes to _endurance_. Sure, you can outfly them if you fly a short distance, but the Dragonite can still travel farther than you could in a single day. While they could reach Oracion Village in a matter of sixteen hours, it would take you two days due to all the rest stops you must take along the journey. A Dragonite does not need much rest when it flies. It's why they're so valuable."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Vantis said carelessly. "Overrate the Dragonite just like everyone else. Tch, never hear the end of them whenever Pokémon talk about dragons."

Vantis looked back at the group.

"Alright, well if you kiddies are ready, let's get going," the Flygon said enthusiastically. "We should be able to make it there a little before evening if we leave now. We'll have to spend the night there, but hey, that's okay. They don't mind us."

Terron's eyes grew.

"We have to stay with them for an entire night?" Terron asked, dread filling his being.

"Well yeah," Vantis replied. "I mean, I've gotta rest after all that flying. And it's not safe to fly at night since I can't see where I'm going. So yeah, we've gotta stay there. But, they won't mind. I mean, I was just there a month ago. The place is pretty cool in my opinion. Sure, the place is… odd, but it's still a hospitable place. Why so worried?"

"Terron's scared of the place," Zekra blurted. "Don't know why, though."

The Cubone gave Zekra a sharp glare, but she wasn't bothered.

"Oh Terron," Vantis chuckled. "It's not so bad. There's no need to be scared."

The Flygon pat Terron on the head with a clawed hand. Terron's brain became rattled upon having somebody tap on his helmet. He swatted away Vantis's hand.

"Well, I'll be waiting outside," Vantis said. "Don't keep me waiting too long!"

The Flygon instantly flew out the door, leaving the four with Éclair.

"I recommend you meet up with him right away," Éclair said. "He's right about needing to fly there now to make it before the sun completely sets. Then also, he can be rather impatient. When he wants you to meet up with him, he wants you to do it within five minutes. Otherwise, he'll come looking for you and harass you."

"Okay, we'll get going then," Zekra said with a nod. "See you around!"

The team left the room and made their way down the long stairs. As they walked, they made sure they had all the supplies they needed. The team didn't really think they'd need supplies since they weren't going into a dungeon, but they figured to bring items just in case something went wrong and brought food to eat as they flew.

When the four stepped outside, they found Vantis standing by the exit. As soon as he saw them, he got on all fours so that the team could climb onto his back. He smiled at the group as he got his wings out of the way.

"You guys ever flown on a dragon before?" Vantis asked.

"No, not really," Zekra replied. "We've used Drifblim, but not Flygon. You sure you can carry all of us?"

"Why yes I can!" Vantis said. "And if not, well I can always hold one of you in my arms. I've had to do that a couple of times, so it's not a big deal."

"Well alright then," Zekra said with a nod. "Let's get going!"

She got onto the Flygon's back and wrapped her paws around his neck. Syn quickly followed behind her and found a comfortable spot near the base of Vantis's tail. He wrapped his vines around the base of the dragon's wings, looking content and quite excited about flying.

"We aren't going to fly off?" Impetus asked.

"No, you're not," Vantis assured. "Just as long as you hold on tight, you'll be fine. And if you fall, well I can catch you. It's not that hard."

"I don't want to fly, but because the others will, I suppose I have no choice," Impetus stated with a frown. "What is the safest place to sit on?"

"Anywhere," Vantis answered. "No matter where you sit, you'll always be safe and have a fun time!"

Impetus didn't look very thrilled when she heard this, but nonetheless, she climbed onto the Flygon's back and sat between Zekra and Syn. Now, all that was left was for Terron to get on. But the Cubone remained where he was. He wasn't moving at all.

Terron was terrified of getting on that Flygon. He had flown several times by Drifblim, but the Cubone knew flying on Vantis would be an entirely different experience. He had seen how quickly Vantis flew around. He'd no doubt fly off the dragon, despite how much Vantis would try to deny that. Plus, he had a suspicion that he'd be flying up much higher than the Drifblim ever did. He wouldn't be surprised if they even flew higher than the clouds.

Besides, he still didn't want to go to Dusk Mines. He didn't want to know what that place had in store for him. He didn't want to see their leader…

Vantis noticed Terron's reluctance and was very quick to pinpoint the reason.

"Come on, Terron," Vantis urged. "Flying isn't so bad with me. I know being a ground-type makes you all acrophobic, but trust me; there's nothing to worry about. I mean, look at me! I'm a ground-type and I fly all the time!"

"But you're part dragon!" Terron stated. "Of course you don't feel scared!"

"Well true, but I still hated to fly when I first got the power to fly," Vantis said solemnly. "It took me a while to get comfortable with flying when I was so used to staying on land. I used to always walk around rather than fly since I dreaded doing it. But hey, you get out of it once you start flying around and feel that awesome feeling of soaring through the air!"

Terron didn't say anything. He remained standing, overwhelmed by fear. Vantis let out a sigh as he slowly rose into the air, despite not flapping his wings. Zekra and Syn grinned eagerly at the anticipation of flying while Impetus kept her calm composure. The Flygon stared at Terron for a while, as if waiting for the Cubone to change his mind and come along with the team. Yet, Terron found he couldn't do so.

"You know… I really hate doing this…" Vantis started to say.

Without warning, Vantis landed back on the ground and grabbed Terron from behind with his claws. Terron screamed and squirmed around in the Flygon's grasp, realizing what was about to happen.

"… but we really need to get going," Vantis said. "Take off time, kiddies!"

Before Terron could say anything, the Flygon pushed off against the dirt and sped into the air. Terron watched in horror as Aurora Town faded before his eyes, quickly becoming nothing but a blur of colors. He felt his stomach become twisted into a knot as a sickly feeling came over him. He could hear his teammates screaming in joy at the intense speed, but Terron sure didn't feel the same way. He could feel tears streaming out of his eyes before they disappeared into the wind.

Terron shut his eyes as Vantis continued to gain altitude. While Vantis had a rather tight grip around the Cubone, Terron still felt he would get blown out of the Flygon's arms. He wanted to hold onto the Flygon somehow, but there wasn't much he could in his situation. All Terron could do was pray that the Flygon would keep him safe. He held the bones in his hands tightly as he waited for the flight to end.

* * *

After what felt like forever, Terron stopped feeling the heavy winds that threatened to send him spiraling to his doom. There was no longer a vacuum pulling him back toward the land. And yet, Terron didn't feel anything beneath his feet. He was still in Vantis's grasp.

Reluctantly, Terron opened his eyes to figure out what was going on. What he saw was the view of an entire canyon. He could see the large crevices within the barren land, where a river flowed far below. Confused, he looked around and was quick to find that Vantis was standing right at the edge of a cliff. He was taking in the view, smiling peacefully.

When the dragon noticed Terron with his eyes open, his smile seemed to widen.

"It's a nice view, isn't it?" Vantis then asked.

Terron scowled. He really wanted to smack the Flygon with a bone right now, but he held back the urge. Instead, he expressed his thoughts vocally.

"Why did you have to do that?!" Terron cried. "Flying was terrifying! Especially since you did it so suddenly!"

"Well you weren't going to come by choice," Vantis shrugged. "What can I say?"

Terron let out a groan of frustration. Zekra, Syn, and Impetus peered over Vantis's side to look at Terron. They all were much less of a wreck than Terron.

"You look awful," Impetus said simply. "I recommend you relax. We still have many hours of flight left. If you want to make the experience as painless as possible, you need to get over your fear."

"I thought you hated flying," Terron said in disbelief. "Why do you sound so satisfied with being in the air now? You hated it whenever you went with the Drifblim!"

"Because I don't like the way they carry me," Impetus explained. "I don't like their arms. Here, it's my choice of how I wish to be carried. Flying on the back is more comfortable."

Terron rolled his eyes at her comment. He looked back at Vantis, who was still staring at the Cubone.

"Why are we stopping anyway?" Terron asked. "And how long have we been flying?"

"Oh, about an hour," Vantis replied. "I just needed to reach a certain altitude is all, and then I flew a little bit north. We should have covered a decent amount of miles. Now we're just taking a little break since I need to do these every so often. We're on some place called Desolate Canyon."

Terron took in a deep breath as he tried to calm his racing heart. He was on land now. There was no need for him to panic anymore.

As Terron eased his fears, he once again noticed Vantis's scarf. It was a nice scarf, clearly in good condition, but he hadn't seen this kind of scarf before. Staring at it only got him more curious about what it was.

"What kind of scarf is that?" Terron asked.

"Oh, it's a detect band," Vantis answered. "Helps make sure I can dodge moves better. Very useful for battle."

"I see," Terron said with a nod. "Just wondering since I haven't seen those before."

"I've heard they're hard to find sometimes, so that's understandable," Vantis shrugged.

The five remained on the top of the mountain for a while, breathing in the calming air. Terron attempted to get back on the ground, but Vantis wouldn't let him. The Cubone figured it was because Vantis thought he'd try to escape, but Terron saw no point in that since he was miles away from home. In fact, he didn't think he could get home from where he was. None of the landmarks looked remotely familiar.

After resting for thirty minutes, Terron felt Vantis lift off the ground. He started to feel tense once more, but then he noticed something about the Flygon; Vantis wasn't flapping his wings. They remained stationary and spread out the way they normally were. Yet, the dragon slowly rose higher into the air, completely defying gravity. This got Terron's mind off his terrors.

"How are you flying when you aren't using your wings?" Terron asked.

Vantis chuckled at the comment as he started gaining speed. His ascension speed began to increase as he flew toward the clouds, but Terron paid no attention to that.

"Well that's simple to answer," the Flygon replied. "You see, I don't really need to flap my wings to fly. _No _dragon really has to. It's a magical part of being a dragon; you don't need the wings to fly. We just use some kind of weird power inside of us. The wings are just used for steering, or if you're me, they're also good for kicking up sandstorms. You wouldn't want my wings to flap if you were flying with me anyway. They beat about as fast as Scyther wings whenever those bugs fly. You might get cut up if you got caught in them!"

He laughed some more, though none of the other Pokémon laughed. They found the comment to be either odd or really disturbing.

"So that's why Rayquaza can fly even though he has no wings," Impetus said, more curious than anything else. "I've seen pictures of him, and I always thought he was depicted in the wrong way. Because he didn't have wings."

"Precisely," Vantis replied. "Now, you kids ready to fly again? Well, high-speed flying anyway."

"Yeah!" Syn and Zekra cried eagerly.

"No!" Terron cried instead.

"Meh, fly," was Impetus's reaction.

"Alright, I've got two yes answers, one whatever answer, and a single no," Vantis reported. "Yes wins this question! Sorry Terron; you'll just have to go along with this. Just try to chill and everything will be fine. And keep your eyes open; closing them makes things a lot worse."

Terron frowned, but he knew he couldn't argue. Besides, where would they go if they didn't fly away from here? Terron didn't see any cities from the mountain top.

Vantis flew forward, zipping by the scenery. They flew a bit lower in the air than Terron expected, but it was still quite high compared to what the Drifblim did. They were flying through the clouds, where occasionally, the Cubone could see pieces of Shiron wherever there was a gap in the endless blanket of white. The land was so very far away…

Terron fought hard against his instincts, which insisted on keeping his eyes downward. He used all his willpower to keep them looking forward into the never-ending sight of blue sky. As the vacuum of wind pinned him into Vantis's chest, Terron attempted to relax. He had to learn to enjoy this flight as Impetus said. Otherwise, the next few hours were going to be agonizing.

The Cubone took in a couple of deep breaths, taking in the cold air.

"HI TERRON!" a loud voice called from behind.

Terron turned his head the best he could so he could see who was calling him. The wind made doing this a bit difficult, but he managed to do it with some effort. Behind him, latched onto the end of Vantis's tail with his vines and arms, was Syn. Despite how horrified Terron was, the Snivy appeared to be smiling as he clung to the tail.

"SYN! HOW DID YOU GET BACK THERE?!" Terron cried.

"OH, I JUST FELL!" Syn answered, sounding as happy as ever. "IT'S PRETTY FUN! YOU SHOULD TRY IT! IT GETS YOUR MIND OFF EVERYTHING WHEN YOU'RE BACK HERE!"

Terron didn't know what to say. He could only stare at the Snivy in disbelief. How was it possible to enjoy flying like that? Didn't Syn realize he could fall off at any time?

"YEAH TERRON, YOU'LL LIKE IT!" Vantis then said. "IT'S THE PERFECT WAY TO GET YOU OVER YOUR FEAR!"

Terron's eyes grew in horror. Before he could do anything, Vantis tossed the Cubone into the air. With careful timing, Vantis made the Cubone land in the middle of his tail. Terron quickly hugged the tail for dear life as the wind became even stronger. He could feel it pushing him off his ride, but Terron did everything he could to resist.

"I HATE YOU, VANTIS!" Terron cried.

Terron felt himself sliding backwards into Syn. He tried to tighten his grip, but fighting against the wind proved to be futile. He and Syn were slowly pushed back and were very close to slipping off the tail.

And then they did fall off. Syn still had his vines attached to the tail, so he thankfully didn't plummet to his death. Terron on the other hand, had no such extra support. He was forced to grab onto Syn's hand to prevent himself from plummeting down below.

"VANTIS!" Terron cried desperately.

"FINE! BOTH OF YOU LET GO!" Vantis replied.

"WHAT?! ARE YOU _TRYING_ TO KILL US?!" Terron screamed.

"NO! JUST TRUST ME!" Vantis said in agitation.

"I DON'T TRUST YOU!" Terron quickly shouted.

"WELL _I'M_ GOING TO LET GO ANYWAY SINCE _I_ TRUST HIM!" Syn stated. "WE'LL BE FINE!"

"SYN, IF YOU LET GO, I'M GOING TO-"

It was too late. The Snivy had already released his hold and the two rapidly descended from the sky. Terron quickly put a hand over his helmet to keep it from flying off his head. He kept his grip on Syn with his other hand, despite knowing this wasn't going to solve anything.

This felt so much like falling off Diamond Dust Mountain's cliff. Terron could only watch as Shiron became closer and closer, hyperventilating in the process.

_**THUMP!**_

Suddenly, Terron and Syn were sitting on Vantis's back. The Flygon had swooped down right after they dropped from his tail and maneuvered himself to make them land along his back. Though Syn was quick to recover from the experience, Terron still looked like he was about to faint. His body was shaking and he took quick, raspy breaths every time he breathed.

Vantis once again went back on the proper trail, laughing.

"ENJOY 'FLYING'?" Vantis asked Terron.

"NO!" Terron shouted, on the verge of tears. "NEVER DO THAT AGAIN OR I'M GOING TO HAVE A HEART ATTACK!"

"HEH, YEAH YEAH, OKAY," Vantis laughed. "I'LL STOP MESSING WITH YOU FOR THE REST OF THE FLIGHT!"

"YOU BETTER!" Terron said fiercely.

* * *

After many hours of tolerating the long flight and stopping at a few locations along the way, the group finally arrived at their destination. Vantis gently landed upon the soil and bent down so that his passengers could get off with ease. Terron was the very first to jump off the dragon's back. He landed onto the dry dirt, feeling such an intense emotion from being reunited with the land. No matter how many times the group made rest stops, Terron was always so happy to be back on the ground. He relished in the feeling as his other teammates landed behind him, stretching out their muscles.

Terron was so occupied with enjoying the feel of dirt under his feet, that he didn't notice anything around him. It seemed he was in his own little world.

"Ohhhhh… visitors," a new, eerie voice suddenly said. "And from the west Fellowship…"

Terron immediately came back to reality and finally noticed a Duskull floating a few inches away from his face. It stared at him, its one glowing eye switching back and forth between its eye sockets. Terron fell backwards at the sudden appearance, and for a split second, he thought he was seeing the Plagued One that had been staring at him this very same way.

It was at this moment that Terron finally noticed what was behind the Duskull: Dusk Mines. This was the Dusk Mines Fellowship. He was at the place he least wanted to visit.

Dusk Mines was built into the side of a large mountain. Such a mountain reached high into the sky, casting its shadow over Terron. Even in the light of the disappearing sun, the mine and mountain still had an ominous vibe to it.

It didn't help that the very entrance to the mine was not a simple hole or a tunnel supported by planks of wood . Instead, the entry into this Fellowship was what looked like a gaping mouth filled with sharp teeth. There were no "teeth" at the bottom of the entrance, but Terron wasn't sure if that made things any better. Floating high above the entrance were two Shuppet, acting as a watchers to make sure no one snuck into the Fellowship. They eyed Terron with mischievous grins on their faces.

"Oh, hi Rip," Vantis said to the Duskull. "It's been a while since I've seen you."

Rip brought its attention to the Flygon before wandering over to him. It smiled before circling around his head continuously.

"Ah, it's Vantis," Rip said pleasantly. "Welcome back to our Fellowship. What are you doing here once more? Not many creatures want to visit here very often…"

"Well, I was escorting these kids here since they need to get some evolution stones from you guys," Vantis explained, trying to keep an eye on the Duskull as he moved. "Our Fellowship is kinda running out of those things, and we really need them for bribing material."

"Ah, running out already," Rip chuckled. "It's only been a month since we gave you ten of our precious stones. Well, it's a good thing for you that we have such an amount of them. Come then. Let me take you to my liege."

The Duskull drifted toward the entrance and disappeared inside. Vantis followed behind him, quickly followed by Team Vendetta. Terron was very reluctant to go inside the place, but he didn't want to be left out here alone with those Shuppet. At least he could be with his friends if he went inside. That alone was good enough of a motivation to enter Dusk Mines.

Upon entering the mine, Terron found himself wandering through a dark tunnel. He could barely see anything. There were no torches or candles, much unlike Aurora Town's Fellowship. The only sources of light were various jewels plastered into the walls, all shining dimly somehow. They were very much like stars in the night sky.

Though Terron's eyes eventually adjusted to the poor lighting, he still kept his sights on the glowing Duskull eye. As long as he kept an eye on that occasionally, he'd end up in the right place.

As the group wandered down the tunnel, they saw many other Pokémon wandering through the other passageways, despite it being near evening. There were many types of Pokémon here, proving to Terron that this Fellowship wasn't selective with their members. Though, there were quite a few more ghost and dark-types here than he had ever seen at the other Fellowship. There seemed to be at least three dark and ghost-type to every non-dark and non-ghost type.

Yet, despite the members being just like any other Fellowship member, the ones here seemed to have a different look to them. All of them, even the ones whose species were perceived as cheerful, had these strange looks on their faces. They were the looks Zekra sometimes wore whenever she was about to kill a living creature. It wasn't necessarily pure bloodlust, but some kind of eerie excitement. Terron thought it was bad enough seeing it on Zekra occasionally, but seeing it on everybody around him was unnerving.

Terron looked at the others to see how they were reacting. Vantis was making small talk with Rip. Zekra was looking around with bright eyes, apparently fascinated by the design of the Fellowship. Syn glanced at his surroundings at well, though he was a lot less thrilled about the place. And then Impetus was simply looking ahead, not paying attention to the details of the place.

As they walked, Terron continued to feel the eerie vibes he felt when he first saw Dusk Mines. While it seemed to lessen the more he walked through this Fellowship, it was still very noticeable. It followed him no matter where he went, keeping his heart filled with dread at all times. Sometimes, it would even make him hear things that weren't really there.

After traversing through a series of tunnels that all seemed to be exactly the same, the team and Vantis finally arrived at a metal door. Standing guard in front of the door were three Houndoom. Upon seeing the group, the three turned their heads to Rip.

"Who are they?" one of the Houndoom growled. "I recognize the Flygon, but what of the children?"

"They're members of the Aurora Town Fellowship," Rip said. "Interesting, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is," the same Houndoom replied. "Children… haven't seen children in such a long time. What business do they have here?"

"They want to get more of our evolving stones," Rip answered. "They need to see our liege for that."

The Houndoom looked at the children and glared at them suspiciously.

"Show us your Fellowship marks, then we shall let you through," a different Houndoom ordered.

The four held out their paws to show the marks. The guards studied them for a moment before stepping away from the door. Rip smiled as he grabbed onto Terron and flew straight for the still closed door.

"Hey, wait! What are you doing?!" Terron cried as they neared the door. "We're going to crash!"

"Oh no, you won't," Rip assured. "You're with me now. You can go through anything when you're with me."

Before the Cubone could ask what he meant, the two made contact with the metal. But, rather than bang his head, the two went directly into the door. Terron's head throbbed as a chill overcame him. He couldn't breathe as everything disappeared and literally nothing manifested before his eyes. The only thing he knew was that Rip was still holding him, and the cold was overwhelming his senses. He couldn't think or move.

Just as Terron thought he was going to scream, he was suddenly dropped to the ground. His weapons tumbled out of his hands thanks to how stiff they were. Terron coughed as he slowly got his bones back and stood up. He shivered uncontrollably, still feeling the cold throughout his being.

As Terron attempted to recover, he heard someone land behind him. He looked back to find that Zekra was now there, though not nearly as affected as Terron. Not long after she appeared, Rip came through the door once more and dropped off Syn, followed by Impetus and Vantis, where it simply dragged them through the door.

It was then that Terron realized they were now in the room on the other side of the door. He had just fazed through a solid object. Somehow, touching a ghost made him temporarily intangible.

After Terron pondered in this for a moment, he brought his focus to the new room. Unlike the hallways, this room was actually lit by candles scattered all throughout the room. Some hung from the ceiling by a chandelier, while others were mounted onto the walls by candle holders. There were still gems in the cave walls, but the flames offered much more sufficient light and made everything more seeable.

An endless supply of books sat neatly in shelves lined against the wall, where stone carvings of strange creatures served as book stoppers. Terron didn't recognize any of the creatures, as none of them appeared to be Pokémon he knew. In the very back of a room were piles of precious gems such as rubies and sapphires. Every jewel in existence was just sitting there, for seemingly no reason.

Sitting at a large desk in the middle of the room was a Sableye. He was staring at the five with an amused grin. All of his jagged teeth were very visible in that smile. Terron's breath started to shorten upon seeing this Sableye. There was such a terrifying aura around him that filled up the entire room. Every time Terron blinked, he could have sworn that he saw a dark energy spreading out of the Sableye.

"My liege, I have brought you members of the Aurora Town Fellowship and one of the leaders of such," Rip said humbly. "They wish to speak to you regarding certain business. I hope we aren't bothering you."

"No no, I'm not doing anything important," the Sableye assured. "Thank you, Rip. You may go, if you please."

"Thank you, my liege," the Duskull said.

Rip gave a small bow before disappearing through the door once more. Now, the group was stuck with this Sableye by themselves. Terron quietly backed up against the door and tried to see if there was a way to get out. Unfortunately, the door didn't open or close. There was no lock or doorknob. It was just an immovable block of metal. There was no way Terron could get out of here without that Sableye's help since he was half-ghost, or if another ghost came. Terron doubted another ghost would come, however, and he really didn't want the Sableye coming near him. Just looking at his jeweled, glowing eyes was disturbing enough.

The Sableye got out of his seat and came over to the group. He wasn't very tall despite what Terron thought, and stood at about the Cubone's height. Tied around his neck was a tattered black cape, which only barely stayed off the ground. Terron wasn't really sure why a Sableye would have a cape of all things, but he was too scared to ask.

The Sableye bowed to the five.

"Welcome to the Dusk Mines Fellowship," the Sableye greeted. "I am Yimtri, leader of this Fellowship. What are your names?"

"I'm Zekra," Zekra said cheerfully. "And these are my friends: Syn, Impetus, and Terron."

"And you know me already," Vantis said with a smile. "I was just here last month."

"Yes, you're one of the west Fellowship's leaders," Yimtri said with a nod. "I thought you looked familiar. Good to see you again."

The Sableye glanced over at Team Vendetta before making his way toward them. He stopped before them with that creepy smile still on his face.

"What brings you here, thousands of miles away from your Fellowship?" Yimtri asked. "What have you come to ask me? I know you haven't come just to visit me."

He chuckled at the comment. Zekra also laughed at the remark before giving her answer.

"Well, our Fellowship needs your evolution stones," Zekra explained. "I guess we're running out, and for some reason, you guys have a lot. Soooo we're here to pick them up and take them back to our place."

"Asking for our stones as usual," Yimtri said simply. "I should have suspected as much. That's the only reason your members visit us… and to bring us the criminals who lie to you."

"If I may ask, how do you guys have so many evolution stones?" Zekra asked curiously. "I mean, aren't there a shortage of them?"

"So you know. Very good," Yimtri cooed as he pat the Zorua's head. "You're very informed. Well, let me tell you then, since you're so curious. You see, shortly after my members and I built this very Fellowship, we discovered a Mystery Dungeon filled with the precious evolving stones. The very place seemed to produce the stones, never ceasing in their creation. We don't know why such a place has a vast amount of the stones, but we don't question it. We simply go there and take the stones we need, and make sure no one else except the Fellowships discover its existence. It's a simple process."

The Sableye's smile started to widen.

"In fact, tomorrow morning, you're going to go there to find what you seek," he stated. "You will _all_ collect the stones you need."

Terron's jaw dropped.

"_What?!_" Terron asked in disbelief. "I thought we were just picking them up from you! No one ever said anything about going to get them from some dungeon!"

Yimtri turned his head toward the Cubone. He approached Terron, laughing under his breath.

"Oh, I didn't notice you," Yimtri chuckled. "You were so quiet and far away from the others. If you were a ghost-type, you'd be excellent at spying on others for me."

He stopped in front of Terron. Terron backed up into the door, feeling his heart race. The horrifying aura was starting to suffocate him. He wanted to get out here, but there was no way out.

"Didn't you wonder why the mission was given a hazard level?" Yimtri asked deviously. "Did you really think that receiving evolving stones from me was the entire mission? Why such a high rating for such a simple task? You never asked yourself such questions?"

Terron reluctantly shook his head. The Sableye laughed at his reaction. After the Sableye calmed down a minute later, Yimtri stepped away from Terron to give him his space.

"Your team will go to the dungeon of evolving stones, but I'll be sure to send a few of my followers with you," Yimtri said to Terron.

Terron didn't know how to react. His mind wasn't working properly. He couldn't even bring himself to ask why _they_ had to go retrieve the stones from their actual source rather than Dusk Mines members. He only stood there, eyes wide.

"Tomorrow, the four of you will go to the dungeon with members of my Fellowship," Yimtri stated. "Vantis, you can choose whether or not you want to come with them. I know you were simply the escort, so I'm not going to force you to follow them."

"It's fine," Vantis shrugged. "I might as well go."

"Alright, then the five of you shall go to the Erebus Woods dungeon in the morning," Yimtri said. "No exceptions."

Something in Terron's mind clicked upon hearing this.

"Erebus…" he repeated out loud. "Why's it called Erebus Woods?"

"Because the dungeon had no name when we discovered it," Yimtri explained. "So, I gave it a name. I gave it the name of Erebus. Why such an odd question?"

"Erebus… I don't like that name," Terron said quietly. "There's something… sinister about that name."

Yimtri gave Terron a long stare. His smile had completely disappeared. The other members of Team Vendetta stared at Yimtri and Terron strangely, trying to figure out why the Sableye's mood had suddenly changed.

"Terron, Erebus is just a made-up name," Vantis said unsurely. "Just like how my name and Yimtri's name is made up. It's not meant to be sinister; it's just a jumbled up mess of sounds."

"Yes it is," Yimtri said. "Don't get disturbed by my naming techniques, Terron."

The Sableye pondered in something for a moment.

"I just realized that all of my strongest members will be gone tomorrow," he stated. "I'm afraid they won't be able to escort you into Erebus Woods. So… it seems I'll have to go with you."

Terron tried to say something, but nothing would come out of his mouth. He felt a chill up his spine.

"Yes… I'll have to go," Yimtri said, seeing Terron's terror-stricken face. "Someone who has experience with the dungeon needs to come with your team. My best suited members will not be available, leaving only me as the next best suited. Don't be so frightened of me. I mean no harm."

Yimtri grinned mischievously.

The Cubone still didn't say anything. His voice was frozen, and he found he couldn't reject the idea. His thoughts remained sealed away in his head.

"Alright, I guess that's fine," Zekra shrugged, speaking for Terron. "Plus, it might be kind of cool to go on a mission with a leader. I mean, it wasn't fun with one of our leaders, but it might be fun with you, Yimtri."

"Yes, I'm sure it will," the Sableye chuckled.

Yimtri looked toward the metal block that was the door. He walked toward it before stopping besides Terron.

"Since you're going to stay with us tonight, allow me to show you your rooms," the Sableye said.

Yimtri proceeded to grab Terron by the arm and drag him into the wall. Terron flinched. The second the Sableye touched him, Terron felt a bitter cold come over him. Such an intense amount of dark feelings filled Terron's being, momentarily overflowing the Cubone with a dread far beyond what he felt when he wandered through Dusk Mines. But, before Terron could scream in terror, Yimtri got out the other end of the door and left the Cubone next to his Houndoom guards. He then went to go retrieve everyone else. After everyone had been taken to the main tunnel system, the Sableye led the five to their temporary rooms.

After trekking through the passages, the team finally came to the resting area of the base. Yimtri stopped in front of one of the doors before opening it up, since it actually had a doorknob unlike his office. The six Pokémon stepped inside and took a look around.

Just like the rest of the base, the only light source here was the glowing gemstones. There were no candles to offer additional light. But, what it lacked in light, it made up for in comfort. There were numerous beds beside the walls. They weren't just piles of hay either: they were large cushions with blankets and pillows.

Terron went up to one of the beds before sitting down on it. It felt so comfortable and reminded him of how the beds from his human days were. It might not have looked the same, but it sure felt just as comfy. It felt like he was sitting on Mareep fur. Terron let out a content sigh.

Terron turned his head to suddenly find the Sableye standing right next to him. He was wearing that creepy grin again. The Cubone, out of reaction, attempted to slam his club into the Sableye's face. As to be expected, his bone and hand went straight through Yimtri's face, leaving him completely unharmed. Terron's hand grew cold from having it inside the Sableye's head. He quickly withdrew his hand and caressed it.

"Typical reaction," Yimtri chuckled. "I never get tired of doing that. Anyway, enjoy your stay here with us. Get some rest. You'll need it for tomorrow."

"Yeah, if that's even possible here…" Terron muttered to himself.

Yimtri and Terron watched as the others went to go claim their own beds. Once they had, they crawled in and got comfortable. They too, seemed very content with the beds. Yimtri started to walk away upon seeing everyone had settled in.

"Yimtri," Terron called.

The Sableye stopped and turned to face the Cubone.

"What is it, Terron?" Yimtri asked.

Terron, though feeling very reluctant, slowly began to speak. He nervously played with the bones in his hands.

"… You say Erebus Woods constantly makes evolution stones, right?" Terron asked.

"Yes, that's right," Yimtri replied. "I believe I mentioned this before."

"But, why do you guys keep it a secret?" Terron then asked. "I mean, if it's making so many stones, you could just let the public know and there wouldn't be a shortage anymore. Everyone can just go to the dungeon and get the stones they need. So… why? Why do you hide that?"

Yimtri paused. He stared at Terron for a while, contemplating in silence. For once, there was a look of uncertainty in his eyes. It was so strange to see reluctance on him after seeing nothing but slightly psychotic expressions. And in just that moment, the horrible aura surrounding the Sableye went away. After he came to an answer, the Sableye approached the Cubone once more and stopped besides him.

"Because Erebus Woods is no ordinary Mystery Dungeon," Yimtri said quietly, as if not wanting the others to hear. "It's crawling with your worst nightmares. There is no light. You will not see anything unless you have fire or an item that brings forth light. The denizens of the dungeon are merciless and are masters of shadows, no matter how weak they may appear. The very _plants _of the dungeon will kill you if you don't keep an eye out. Everything there is watching you at all times. You are _never_ alone in that dungeon, even if you're stranded from your teammates. But, those aren't the reasons we keep the place a secret. There's a more disturbing reason."

"What… what would that be?" Terron asked, already feeling terrified by the news.

Yimtri gave Terron the reason. Terron was so horrified by the news, that he couldn't even say anything. The Sableye went away without another word, his usual atmosphere returning to him. He talked to the others for a while before bidding them all good night. As Yimtri left the room and shut the door behind him, Terron put the blankets over his head and curled into a ball. He desperately tried to fall asleep, but how could he after what he had heard? They were going to Erebus Woods tomorrow. They were going to that nightmarish place…

As Terron lay there in the bed pathetically, shivering in terror, Yimtri's last words rang endlessly in his mind.

"… _When you die in Erebus Woods, you don't get revived and thrown out just as every normal dungeon does. If you die in Erebus Woods, your body never leaves. You stay there forever." _


	24. Chapter 23: The Grasp of Erebus

**Chapter 23**

**The Grasp of Erebus**

* * *

It was near midnight, and Terron was still awake. His body was still trembling. He wasn't feeling the least bit tired. While his other teammates slept peacefully, he continued to lay there in bed, eyes frozen open in terror. Every time he tried to shut his eyes, he would see nightmarish images of Erebus Woods. He'd see the corpses of fallen explorers attached to the trees, slowly getting their lives sucked out of them and leaving their bodies as brittle shells.

Terron couldn't go to that dungeon. Even if it was part of his mission, Terron refused the idea of exploring that twisted forest. He wasn't going to let himself get killed.

_Why did we have to come here? _Terron wondered. _This place reeks of bad vibes. Why aren't the others so bothered? I understand Zekra… but not Impetus, Syn, and Vantis. They clearly must feel the atmosphere here. They have to know that something about this place is very wrong… _

Terron pulled the blankets off his head and got out of his bed. He slowly wandered over to the other side of the room where Impetus slept. For once, she was sleeping in a bed rather than against the wall. Terron quietly went up to her and gently shook her awake.

Impetus's eyes snapped open as she looked toward Terron. There was not a single sign of tiredness in her eyes, as though she had never been asleep.

"You're awake," she said simply.

"Yeah, I am," Terron said in a hushed tone. "Can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Is it about here?" Impetus asked.

Terron nodded. The Mienfoo slid out of her bed and the two wandered off toward the door so they could speak as far away from the others as possible. Once they were a few feet away from the door, they stopped and turned to one another.

"You know you shouldn't be talking to only me," Impetus stated in a disappointed tone. "The others would want to hear your concerns."

"I already told you that I can't talk to them," Terron said gloomily. "At least, not now. Besides, they already know I'm scared of this place."

"Then why can't you explain that further to them?" Impetus challenged. "It's so simple… but you won't do it. They know you fear here, but they don't understand why. Explain to them. Explain why here scares you."

"Just listen to what I have to say, okay?" Terron hastily said. "We can talk about my problems later. I-I just need to get something out of my head and I need someone to listen to me. So just let me talk for a moment."

"Fine," Impetus replied. "Talk to me. I'll listen and wait."

Terron gave a wry smile as he let out a deep breath. He sat down on the floor. He expected Impetus to do the same, but she remained standing.

"Well, I guess there's two things I want to talk about," Terron began to say. "First off, as I've said countless times, this place terrifies me. Something about here just isn't right. The ominous atmosphere is about as noticeable as a thick fog. You can feel it when you see the entrance… when you wander around the inside… when you look at Yimtri and his members… even as you try to fall asleep. It bothers me, to put it lightly. But, no one else seems to be affected. No one's having the same reaction as I am. I mean, you can feel it, can't you?"

"Yes, I feel it," Impetus said. "It's a powerful, overwhelming energy. It follows you."

"Then how come you aren't bothered by it?" Terron then asked.

"I _am_ bothered by the energy," Impetus replied. "It follows me and wishes to suffocate me. It makes strange images appear in my mind. But, I know we won't stay here long. When we leave, it will no longer stalk me. Knowing that gives me the strength to pretend it doesn't exist. If we were to stay here for a few days, then I'd say something. But one day is a time I can tolerate."

"I guess you have a point," Terron said quietly. "I know I can't tolerate things as well as you, but I guess knowing that helps a little."

Terron looked toward the door for a moment, thinking he heard somebody walk by. But as it turned out, it was just his imagination. This was the fifth time he thought he heard someone since he came to Dusk Mines. Paranoia started to overcome the Cubone, but he fought it off the best he could.

"Anyway, second thing," Terron said. "You know that Erebus Woods place? Well, I found out that there's something really, _really _wrong with that place. More than here, in fact. If that's even possible."

"What's wrong with that place?" Impetus asked curiously. "Besides it being a Mystery Dungeon."

"Well, a lot of things actually," Terron said timidly. "It's not like the other dungeons. It's… it's a death trap. Yimtri said… that… that if we die there… we _actually _die. And we're going there tomorrow. We're going to this monster forest with everything there trying to kill us!"

Terron's hands trembled.

"What… What are we going to do?!" he whimpered. "I don't want to go there! Especially not with Yimtri! I don't want to be with that creepy guy in that creepy forest!"

Impetus stared at Terron, her expression unreadable. Terron panted as he attempted to calm down, trying to get the images of Erebus Woods out of his head. He clutched the sides of his skull as he looked at Impetus, waiting for her answer. There was a look of desperation in his eyes. He just wanted some kind of reaction out of her. He wanted her words of wisdom to help him through this.

"We could ask to not do the mission," Impetus suggested. "If you feel so strongly to stay away from Erebus Woods, why not tell Yimtri that?"

Terron glanced at the ground. The idea sounded appealing to him, but he already saw a problem with it.

"I guess we could…" Terron said reluctantly. "I just don't want to get our leaders mad at us. This is kind of an important mission for the Fellowship since we're getting their main source of bribery material. I mean, I'm sure someone else can do the mission if we decline, but still… I feel a little bad about neglecting our duties because I'm being such a coward."

"If your fear overwhelms your ability to perform properly, then it's best to abort the mission," Impetus said. "The leaders will understand. And hopefully, so will Yimtri."

Terron let out a sigh as he thought about Impetus's words. She was right. Having himself in this terrified condition wasn't exactly a good idea. There'd be more of an opportunity to mess up on the mission if he was so paralyzed in fear. The leaders of his Fellowship would understand his reasoning.

"Yeah… I suppose you're right," Terron said. "Tomorrow… I'll… I'll tell Yimtri I don't wanna do this mission."

"And the others," Impetus added.

Terron grit his teeth.

"You have to, or else they won't want to abandon the mission," Impetus said seriously. "You need to tell them why we're leaving. Get their support."

"… fine," Terron said quietly. "I'll tell them in the morning."

* * *

**Yimtri's Office**

The Sableye sat in his chair in the dead of the night, staring absently ahead of him. He was not asleep, for something was troubling his mind. His mind was normally clouded with so many strange thoughts, but right now, something more troubling than usual was lingering in his mind.

Yimtri put a claw on his head as he tapped his other claw against the surface of his desk.

"Erebus…" Yimtri said to himself. "Why did he have such a strange reaction to that name?"

The Sableye continued to tap his claw against the desk, thinking to himself. Just then, he saw someone coming through the door. It turned out to be a Lampent, carrying a Turtwig in its arms. The Lampent seemed tired and on the verge of passing out, but it managed to somehow stay awake. It gently set the more animated Turtwig on the floor before bringing its attention to Yimtri.

"She wished to see you," the Lampent said. "She wouldn't say why, but she wanted to come here. Sorry if we woke you up, my liege."

"No, I wasn't sleeping," Yimtri assured. "It's fine. Thank you for your concerns."

The Lampent nodded before drifting out the door to give the two their privacy. Yimtri glanced at his member, who was staring at him uneasily.

"How come you're still awake, Chloe?" Yimtri asked curiously. "I believe everyone's retired for the night already."

"Well, you're still awake," Chloe stated blandly.

"True," Yimtri said thoughtfully. "But, that's beside the point. What brings you here?"

The Turtwig glanced at the ground and pawed at it, frowning unpleasantly. Yimtri slid out of his chair and approached her. He knew she only acted this way whenever something was worrying her. In fact… all of his members tended to act this way whenever they were troubled. And each time, whenever they spoke with him, he'd always react the same way; he'd wait for them to speak on their own.

Several minutes passed before the Turtwig finally said a word.

"… I heard you were going to Erebus Woods tomorrow with those Aurora Fellowship members," Chloe mumbled.

"Ah, so you know," Yimtri stated, not sounding very surprised. "Not that I mind of course. May I ask who told you? I'm quite curious as to how that information spread so quickly."

"One of the ghost members heard you talking to those Pokémon, and I guess he told everyone about it," Chloe said carelessly.

She glanced up at the Sableye. Her eyes were filled with a strange mix of melancholy and wonder.

"How come you're going instead of one of us?" Chloe asked. "You never go there. The last time you went there was five years ago. And when you went there, you… yeah."

Yimtri suddenly felt an aching in his mind. It wasn't a physical pain, but it felt just as uncomfortable as one. It was as though some intangible force was crawling inside his brain. He groaned as he rubbed the hurting spot, feeling the strange thoughts in his mind beginning to intensify. When Chloe saw this, she grimaced.

"Are you going to be alright?" she asked. "I mean, I can leave if it's going to get bad…"

"No, it's fine," Yimtri assured hastily. "I'll be fine. Give it a moment to go away."

Chloe nodded reluctantly. The two kept quiet as the headache slowly subsided, leaving Yimtri's mind at peace once more. His mind was still filled with the abnormality that was always there, but at least now, it wasn't being amplified. He let out an exhausted sigh when it was all over.

"Apologies for that," Yimtri said. "Now, back to the matter that concerns you."

The Turtwig nodded as she gave her leader her full attention.

"What this unnamed member told everyone is true," Yimtri began to say. "I'm accompanying the five to Erebus Woods. To be honest, I was considering the thought of sending one of you with them. I can think of many of you who would do well in that place. Certainly, they'd be better suited there than me for a number of reasons… But all of that changed when one of those Aurora Town members said something very unusual. He mentioned something that caught my attention, and due to that, I want to gain as much insight as possible from that one member. He'll be leaving after this mission ends however, and I doubt he'll come back here again. The child is terrified of this place, and I can honestly say I don't blame him. So, the only way to get the information I want from him is to be around him. The only way I knew I could do that was to come on the mission with him. After all, once the mission ends, he and his team will leave. They won't want to stay here for much longer. That's why I must go on this mission rather than one of you: to know more about that child."

"What's so important that you have to go?" Chloe asked curiously.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that," Yimtri said uncomfortably. "As much as it pains me to keep information hidden from all of you, this is something I can't let any of you know. It's unfortunate… but you need to trust me when I say there's a good reason behind it."

The Turtwig frowned glumly, but nodded in understanding.

"Will you be okay going there?' Chloe asked. "I mean, you know what happened last time you went there. I wasn't there to see it, but some of the others told me about it. Just hearing about it sounded so terrifying…"

She trembled at the thought. When Yimtri saw this, he put a claw on her head to put her at ease.

"Don't worry," Yimtri said quietly. "Somehow… everything will be fine."

* * *

The next morning, Terron felt someone poking his side. He tried to swat them away, but the poking persisted. Terron shut his eyes tighter as he curled into a ball. He didn't want to wake up. He only got five hours of sleep, and he only managed to fall asleep due to how exhausted he was. He wanted more rest.

"Come on, Terron!" Syn's voice whined. "Wake up! It's breakfast time!"

Terron, realizing he couldn't stay asleep, slowly opened his bloodshot eyes. He took the blankets off his head and tiredly sat up. He found Syn standing next to him, who seemed rather worn out. However, Terron knew it wasn't because the Snivy didn't get sleep: it was because he hadn't been in the sun for so long. His sagging tail was proof of that.

Terron looked around the room to find that the others were already up and eating their meals in bed.

"When did everybody get breakfast?" Terron asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Oh, the ghosts bring it to us," Syn answered. "They're bringing our food here since we're visitors. If you wanna get something to eat, just wait for one of them to come here and they'll get you something. They've got some really good food here."

Terron wasn't very thrilled at the thought of ghosts going in and out of the room at any given time, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. Plus, he felt rather hungry from staying up so late without any food. He could use something to satisfy his hunger.

Terron nodded in understanding. Syn sat next to Terron as he waited, silently playing with his hands.

Only a few minutes passed before a Yamask drifted through a wall and came over to Terron.

"Did you want some breakfast?" the Yamask asked. "I don't believe we've served you yet."

"Yeah, I guess I'll have something to eat," Terron shrugged. "I'll take whatever you guys have. I don't really have anything in particular that I want."

The Yamask nodded before disappearing through the solid rock once more.

"They'd better not get me something really weird," Terron said with a frown. "This place is already creepy enough."

"They had some good stuff," Syn commented. "Had a lot of things I've never heard of though. Like… there was something here that they gave me called watermelon. It was really big and it was really watery. It still tasted good though."

"I suppose," Terron shrugged. "So, how are you liking this place? It's pretty different than Aurora Town, isn't it?"

"Yeah… it is," Syn said nervously. "It's different alright."

The Snivy shifted uncomfortably in his seat. As soon as Terron saw this, he remembered what he and Impetus had been talking about the night before. Terron, though feeling awkward, decided to bring up the subject with Syn. Perhaps starting with him would be a good start. Then, if all went well, maybe he'd get the motivation to talk to Zekra about abandoning the mission.

"What's your opinion about going to that Erebus Woods dungeon?" Terron asked. "I mean, that's our mission. How do you think we'll do?"

"I think we'll be okay," Syn answered. "We've gone through so many dungeons before. This one shouldn't be any different. We've even gone on collecting missions. It's not hard."

"Yeah, we have," Terron said. "And, you were always the one to find the items so quickly. No one could spot them faster than you could."

"Yeah, it's a talent of mine," Syn remarked. "My parents and I played a lot of hide-and-go-seek, and I could find them so easily, even when they were trying their best to stay hidden. Finding stuff isn't that different from finding Pokémon."

The Snivy smiled wistfully, his eyes dulling as he began reminiscing in the past. Terron felt his heart sink.

"I'm glad you kept that talent," Terron said quietly. "But… we don't have to do this mission you know."

Syn blinked and stared at the Cubone oddly.

"If we want, we can forfeit the mission and go back home," Terron said. "I… I was actually considering doing that and I wanted to know what you thought."

"Why…?" Syn said slowly. "Why would you want to leave the mission? Why don't you want to go searching for evolution stones?"

Terron squeezed his eyes shut as he swallowed hard. He had to talk about what was going through his head. He had to… or else they were going to Erebus Woods.

"Syn…" Terron started to say, refusing to open his eyes. "Erebus Woods isn't a normal place."

"Well of course not," Syn replied. "It's a Mystery Dungeon. Those places are pretty different."

"No, that's not what I mean," Terron said. "Erebus… It's… It's… it's a place… a place… that…"

Just then, the Yamask returned with Terron's meal. It swooped down to him before giving him a plate full of various, sliced fruits. Terron gently took the plate from the ghost and watched it leave the room once more. After it was gone, he started to eat his meal in an attempt to calm down.

"What were you saying, Terron?" Syn asked curiously.

The Cubone looked at the Snivy, his mouth too full of food to say anything. He stared at Syn for a moment, suddenly losing the nerve of convincing Syn to abort the mission. Would telling Syn about Erebus Woods really make him want to leave the mission? The kid had gone through so much already. Surely, he wouldn't be so convinced by the fact that he could die. His very introduction to the Fellowship was having a close encounter with their sworn enemy…

_But he should still know. _Terron reasoned with himself. _He should know the truth. Just because the kid's been through more trauma than me doesn't mean he won't mind the dungeon. He needs to know the risks… the risks that Yimtri didn't tell anyone. _

A horrifying realization came to Terron's mind.

_Why didn't Yimtri tell anyone else besides me about Erebus Woods? Is it because he thought we might abandon the mission if he told us? Why would he care about that? He knows some other team will just come here in a few days and do the mission instead. Why… why didn't he tell anyone? Is he hiding something from us?_

_Maybe…_

_Maybe we really do need to get out of this mission._

"Terron?" Syn asked as he waved a hand in front of the Cubone's face. "You're zoning out and I'm trying to ask you something."

Terron swallowed down his food and cleared his throat.

"Listen, we… we can't go on the mission," Terron said uneasily. "We can't go."

"Why not?" Syn asked. "You keep saying that, but you never say why."

"Because if we go into that dungeon, there's a good chance we're going to die!" Terron blurted out.

Terron's eyes grew at his sudden outburst. He hadn't said it very loudly thankfully, so the others didn't hear his words. But, he was still surprised that he had said the truth so bluntly. It felt so odd talking about what was exactly on his mind after keeping his thoughts locked away for so long.

Syn gave Terron a confused stare.

"Well of course we might die," Syn said. "There's always a chance that'll happen in dungeons. But, we always get revived right before we go to the spirit world, remember? We've had that happen to us a few times. It's nothing to worry about. Why so worried about it now?"

Terron shook his head. He was about to explain what he meant, but before he could, he saw the door open. Yimtri walked in and stopped in the middle of the room. He carried a grey satchel, which Terron assumed was filled with items for the trip.

"It seems all of you are awake," Yimtri said in a pleased tone. "I'm glad to know that. It means I won't have to wake any of you up."

He gave his devious smile as the five got out of their beds and stopped next to him. Terron stayed the farthest away from the Sableye, hoping that he wouldn't get spotted. He knew he needed to talk to Yimtri, but the very second he looked at the Sableye, the thought disappeared and nervousness took over.

"Are all of you ready to go to Erebus Woods?" Yimtri asked.

"Yep! We sure are!" Zekra said cheerfully as she showed him the bag that was strapped around her. "Ready when you are!"

"I'm glad to hear that," Yimtri said. "Well, before we get going, I have a little present to give to you, Zekra."

The Sableye reached into his satchel and pulled out a strange, violet gem attached to a leathery string. Yimtri took the object and tied it around Zekra' neck, making sure it was secure and stayed comfortably in place at the front of Zekra's chest. He took a step back to marvel the necklace.

"What is this?" Zekra asked curiously as she touched the jewel.

"It's a Deception Amulet," Yimtri said with a grin. "It's a rare treasure that amplifies the illusion abilities your kind have. I haven't had a use for it in such a long time. There was a Zoroark who once wore it when he worked here for a time, but he's gone now, and the amulet remained without a user. But now, you're here."

"Thanks!" Zekra smiled. "I'll test it out right now!"

Zekra's body became covered in the pink light. The second she started to transform, the amulet gave off its own purple aura that quickly fused into her aura. The pink light shifted to the dark color as Zekra's form changed rapidly. When the light went away, Zekra was now a Duskull, a Pokémon she hadn't seen in hours. She was a perfect replica of such a Pokémon, absolutely no flaws in her appearance. When Zekra saw this, she laughed triumphantly.

"I… I can turn into Pokémon that aren't in front of me!" Zekra cried. "I can see them so clearly in my head now! I'm not having problems!"

"You couldn't do that already?" Yimtri asked curiously. "I always thought all Zorua could do that at your age."

"Well, not me," Zekra shrugged. "I guess I was a bit behind on that stuff. But now that I have this amulet, that's not a problem! I bet I could use their abilities too if I really wanted!"

Zekra immediately changed back into her normal form.

"Thanks again!" Zekra said happily. "But what's it for? Seems kinda random to just give to me."

"Oh, it's for nothing special," Yimtri said dismissively. "Think of it as a… _thank you_ for visiting us. Besides, the amulet needs someone who can actually use it. I tried to give it to the other Zoroark, but he wouldn't take it. He said it made him too powerful, and he didn't want that."

"Wonder why he wouldn't want that," Zekra wondered.

"I may never know," Yimtri shrugged before turning around. "Now, since all of you are prepared, I believe it's time to depart from here. It's time to go to Erebus Woods."

The Sableye led the way as the others followed. As they walked, Terron couldn't help but stare at Zekra's new item. Why had she truly received it? There was no way Yimtri would simply give her an item of such value for no apparent reason. There had to be a motive.

Yet, no matter how much Terron wondered, he couldn't find an answer.

As the group made their way through the mine, Terron noticed another trio of Pokémon coming up behind them. It consisted of a Zangoose, Combusken, and a Turtwig. They ran past Terron and the others before stopping in front of the Sableye. They all panted heavily as Yimtri stopped and stared at all of them oddly. Team Vendetta and Vantis did the same and observed the scene in silence.

"Is something the matter?" Yimtri asked.

"No, nothing's wrong," the Zangoose said after it caught its breath. "We just wanted to see you before you go."

"And it looks like we got to see you just in time," the Combusken said.

"Wanted to see me before I go…?" Yimtri repeated strangely.

"Yeah," the Zangoose said. "Chloe saw you leaving and thought it would be nice to see you. So she called us up and made us come see you before you left."

"And to wish you good luck on the mission," the Turtwig named Chloe added. "I thought you might like it."

Yimtri chuckled for a moment. He looked upon his members and gave them his usual unnerving smile.

"I appreciate your words, my fellow followers," Yimtri replied. "Thank you. I'll see all of you later today."

The three nodded as their happy smiles quickly changed into the eerie expressions Terron saw upon entering the Fellowship. They all looked like such different Pokémon now. Terron never would have believed these Pokémon had said such kind words to their leader if he hadn't seen how normal they looked just seconds ago. They had changed so quickly…

The trio ran off to go about their day as the group continued their way out of the Fellowship. As they walked, Terron saw many members giving their goodbyes to Yimtri. Just about everyone they passed by seemed to say at least one kind word to their leader with such a cheerful face before immediately reverting back into their creepy ways. Terron wasn't really sure whether he should have been more concerned with the rapid mood changing or the fact that everyone insisted on saying something to their leader.

Eventually, the six made it outside. The sun shined upon them, nearly blinding Terron. He had become so used to the dark, that it came as a real shock to see light again. He squinted his eyes as he slowly let his eyes adjust. The others also seemed to be recovering from the sudden light, except Yimtri. He simply stood there, staring off into the distance as his cape gently swayed in the wind. He wasn't affected by the light at all.

As Terron gained his eyesight back, he noticed the surroundings of Dusk Mines for the first time. Just as King described long ago, the place truly was isolated from the rest of the world. There were no cities in sight, for as far as the land stretched. All that was around were endless fields with mountains lining their sides and the occasional group of trees growing somewhere along the way. Each section of the field seemed to grow something different, such as wheat or sunflowers. There were no roads going through any of these fields. It was only what nature intended.

Yet, despite the peace expected from such a scene, Terron couldn't feel that peace. He could only feel the ever-present ominous atmosphere coming from the Fellowship. It completely corrupted any feelings of serenity he might have had.

Terron looked back at Yimtri to find he was already wandering away with the group. They were heading somewhere west of the mountain, away from the open fields Terron was viewing. Hastily, Terron went after the five, not wanting to get left behind.

"You kids excited about the mission?" Vantis asked Team Vendetta with a smile. "We get to go collect the Fellowship's favorite bribery material! And, with the very leader of Dusk Mines! How cool is that?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty excited!" Zekra replied. "I can't wait to try out the amulet! It'll be so awesome! I'll get to slaughter everyone who gets in my way with my new illusion powers!"

She let out a laugh and smiled at the thought of bloodshed.

"The mission seems interesting," Impetus stated. "It's a task we've never done before. Though I feel reluctant about going to this dungeon, I'll do my best."

"I agree with Impetus," Syn added. "I'm a little nervous, but I bet we'll be fine. Plus, we have you and Yimtri to protect us if anything goes wrong. You guys must be really strong if you're leaders!"

"Heh yeah, we are," Vantis chuckled. "At least, I think I'm pretty tough. Don't know about Yimtri though since I've never seen him battle."

"I'm quite powerful," Yimtri said carelessly, not giving much of his attention to the ones behind him. "You'll see the truth of my words once we enter the dungeon."

Vantis shrugged at the remark as he and Team Vendetta brought their eyes to Terron.

"How are you feeling, Terron?" Vantis asked. "You ready for this awesome adventure?"

Terron snapped out of his thoughts and glanced at the four.

"Oh, yeah I'm ready," Terron said, faking a smile. "I'm ready."

"That's good to hear," Vantis smiled. "Looks like everyone's good for the mission. This will be quite an adventure with the six of us! And the four of you can tell me all about yourselves while we're in the dungeon! I really want to know all about our newest members!"

As Vantis and Team Vendetta chatted among one another, Terron kept looking at Yimtri from the very back of the group. The Sableye wasn't saying a word and kept his eyes ahead of him at all times. It seemed he was in no mood to talk. Terron knew he needed to talk to the Sableye right now if he wanted to get out of his mission, but he found he still couldn't bring up the topic. The fear plagued his thoughts and urged him to talk, but his tongue remained bound. Every time he opened his mouth to say something, he'd lose all of his courage in an instant and would have to remain silent.

After the group managed to get five minutes west of the Fellowship, Yimtri paused for a moment. The rest of the group did the same and looked at him curiously. He wandered off a ways before stopping nearby a strange sight the team hadn't noticed until now.

"We've arrived," Yimtri said, presenting the destination to the team with an outstretched claw. "Behold, Erebus Woods."

Erebus Woods looked nothing like a forest; its entrance looked more like a cave than anything else. The slender trees curled inward and their branches intertwined with one another, forming a tunnel of darkness. One could not see anything within the forest, no matter how close they were to the entrance. The tree roots crept like tentacles across the ground, each covered in sickly moss. They seemed to reach out to the group, as if waiting to grab them at the first given chance.

The appearance of the forest, however, was not nearly as menacing as the aura of darkness which flowed from it. It was an aura he had felt since the day he arrived at the Dusk Mines Fellowship, but standing at the doorstep to this terrible forest made him wonder if he had found the source. Terron could actually _feel_ the forest draining out any remaining trace of his livelihood, as though it were a living spirit that fed upon the hope and happiness of any creature who would draw near. He turned to his teammates to find that they, too, showed clear signs of feeling this dreadful aura.

That is, except Yimtri. In fact, he seemed to grow even more disturbing just by standing near the entrance. Nothing about the Sableye had changed, but for some reason, Terron felt even more terrified of the Sableye. The very air around him was becoming much more unnerving and seemed to join with the dungeon's atmosphere.

"This place is a lot closer to Dusk Mines than I expected," Vantis remarked.

"Yes, yes it is," Yimtri replied.

Yimtri gazed into the dark tunnel of trees.

"Whenever you five are ready, we shall depart," he said. "Whatever you do, do _not _get separated. Erebus Woods is an enormous dungeon. If you get lost… we're never going to find you. Don't make me report to your leaders that I lost one of their members."

"Isn't that kind of true for all dungeons?" Syn then asked. "I mean, if you get separated, you get trapped in the dungeon and then we have to get you. So, why are you warning us about this?"

"Just a precaution I wish to warn you of in case you didn't know," Yimtri said indifferently.

The Sableye continued to stand there, waiting for the group to join him. Slowly, the Pokémon went up to the entrance and waited for Yimtri's cue to enter inside. However, he never gave his command, for Terron was still standing far away from the dungeon. He was frozen in place.

"Terron, it's time to go," Yimtri said. "Come here so I can bring you inside the woods of Erebus."

Terron shook his head, too scared to say anything. Yimtri frowned as he went up to the Cubone.

"You came here to complete a mission, did you not?" Yimtri asked.

"Y-Yeah…" Terron said quietly.

"Then why won't you come with your team?" Yimtri asked. "They wish to complete the mission."

The Sableye's eyes glinted for a brief second.

"It's because of what I told you about the woods, isn't it?" he asked, lowering his voice.

Terron nodded. The Sableye stared at him with a blank expression before starting to laugh. He attempted to hold back his laughter, but Terron could still hear the muffled sounds of amusement.

"You know I wasn't telling the truth, don't you?" Yimtri chuckled. "It was a lie I fabricated to frighten you. It's something I do to visitors every so often. That's how Sableye are; we scare others for amusement. Don't believe my silly ghost stories. No Mystery Dungeon can truly kill anybody."

Terron didn't know what to say. Part of him was relieved that all of that disturbing information was a lie. He had been worried over absolutely nothing, and letting go of that absurd knowledge took a great load off him. He wanted to smile, but there was another part of him that was still suspicious. When Yimtri had told Terron about Erebus Woods, he wasn't smiling like he was now. He had been so serious, something he normally didn't look like. He always appeared to be disturbing, yet at that moment he told Terron about Erebus Woods… none of that was there.

Terron continued to stand there, trying to figure out what to believe.

"Come on, Terron!" Zekra called over. "We've got a mission to do!"

"Yes, come Terron," Yimtri said. "We can't stay here all day."

Terron refused to move.

"Terron!" Yimtri suddenly shouted, his smile disappearing as urgency seeped into his voice. "It's time to go!"

The Sableye abruptly grabbed Terron's wrist and started to drag him off to the dungeon. Terron tried to squirm out of his grip and tried to beat him with his bone, but nothing worked. His attacks were going right through the Sableye's being. Yimtri's cold grasp on Terron wasn't relenting.

"_**I-I don't wanna go!"**_ Terron cried desperately. _**"I don't wanna die! I don't want this mission anymore! Let me go! I don't want to go in there!"**_

"Terron, stop resisting!" Yimtri snapped, becoming increasingly uneasy. "You have to go inside! You don't have a choice anymore! We have to go now!"

"What's going on with you two?" Zekra asked oddly. "Why are you guys acting so funny? What are you talking about?"

"_**We're going to die if we go in the dungeon!" **_Terron yelled frantically. _**"Everything there is trying to kill us and if we die, we die for real!"**_

"Wh… What do you mean?!" Zekra asked, taken aback by the information. "That… that's a joke, right? It's just some sick joke, right?!"

"Everyone! Get inside the dungeon!" Yimtri ordered. "Stop stalling!"

"Yimtri, what's going on?" Zekra asked hesitantly. "Is what Terron said true? Why do you want us to go inside so badly?"

Yimtri grit his teeth as he looked toward the dungeon. Suddenly, he saw a flash of light go off within the forest. It only lasted for a second, but in that one second, he saw something coming toward them. His grip on Terron tightened, nearly cutting off the Cubone's circulation.

"No… it's too late! We stayed here too long!" Yimtri cried in despair. "It's coming!"

"What's coming?" Zekra asked fearfully.

Yimtri glanced back at the group of cowering Pokémon. His eyes shined dangerously.

"Everyone! Grab onto somebody!" Yimtri said hastily. "And no matter what you do-"

Before he could finish, a decaying vine grabbed Terron's leg. It quickly pulled him back, making him collapse onto the ground as it dragged him into the dungeon. Yimtri, who was still holding Terron, also started to get dragged into the dark abyss. But, he refused to go down without a fight. He dug his feet into the ground as he raised his free claw into the air. Dark energy encased his claw before he swiped at the vine, effectively severing it. It disappeared back inside the dungeon as Terron panted heavily, horrified by what had just happened.

But, he wasn't allowed to rest for long. Not even a second later, five thorny branches shot out of the darkness. All of them reached for Yimtri and quickly wrapped around his body, somehow managing to prevent him from phasing out of them and binding his limbs from further movement. They proceeded to drag him into the dungeon, but he wasn't their only captive. Yimtri hadn't let go of Terron, and because of this, Terron also found himself getting sucked into the forest. He tried to get out of the Sableye's grip, but the leader refused to let go.

"Let me go! Let me go!" Terron shrieked.

The Sableye shook his head.

"I can't do that," Yimtri said. "For your sake and mine."

Terron continued to pull away anyway, but nothing could be done to loosen the Sableye's grip.

"Terron!" Syn cried.

The Snivy's vines shot out of his collar as he wrapped them around Terron. He attempted to pull the Cubone out of Yimtri's grasp, but was quick to find that his idea backfired. The plants were far too strong for the little Snivy and soon, the child was being dragged into Erebus Woods with Terron and Yimtri. He released one of his vines and aimed it at one of his teammates so they could pull him and Terron away from the Sableye.

But before the vine could reach his friends, more branches came out of the forest. One of them slashed his vine with a thorn, cutting it to a severely short length. Syn screamed in horror at the sight of his maimed vine as he kicked around frantically. But, it was no use. He was taken away from the outside world with Terron and Yimtri. The last thing he saw as he was dragged away was his teammates grabbing each other as the living plants ensnared them.

After that, everything went dark.

* * *

An unknown amount of time passed before Terron found he could move again. When he opened his eyes, he found he couldn't see anything. There was nothing but darkness. He tried to move his hands in front of his face, but he couldn't tell they were there. He could feel a cool surface resting against his back, but he couldn't tell what it was. He could hear water running all around him, but he didn't know where it was coming from. Everything was black.

"Ah, you're awake," a familiar voice said. "I was wondering how long it would take you to regain consciousness."

Terron looked toward the source of the voice to find two glowing lights next to him. Upon seeing them, he scowled fiercely. Memories of his last moments in the outside world came rushing to mind.

"Why did you drag me down here?!" he cried as he sat up. "I told you I didn't want to be here! Yet you went ahead and forced me to come anyway! Why?!"

He heard Yimtri sigh and dig through his bag. After listening to the sounds of him shuffling through the items, a light appeared. In the Sableye's hand was a glass sphere of purple fire. It glowed brightly, giving off a wider radius of light than the Light Ball ever had. The flame burned endlessly within the object, somehow not needing oxygen or fuel to stay alive. Yimtri rolled the ball in his hands as he watched the fire flicker. His body was covered in scratches, but the Sableye seemed to pay no mind to that.

"I didn't know for sure if you wanted to abandon your mission," Yimtri explained. "I knew you were terrified of this place, but I didn't know if that was going to stop you. But, you told me the truth too late, and Erebus Woods didn't want to wait for us…"

"It… didn't want to wait for us?" Terron repeated. "What does that mean?"

Yimtri glanced at his surroundings, followed by Terron. It seemed they were inside of some kind of cave where the trees grew alongside the walls and hung down from the ceiling. Their bark was covered in thick moss and their roots spread into a small channel of water going through the area. Terron and Yimtri were sitting on one of the many rocks nearby the water.

"Hey, wait," Terron started to say. "Why is this place so different from the outside? I mean, I know Erebus Woods never looked like a normal forest to begin with, but it wasn't like this…"

"Erebus Woods is a special kind of dungeon," Yimtri replied. "It's not restricted to just the forest. It also stretches into the mountain behind the exterior. Every ten sectors of this dungeon is a different environment. Based on what I can gather, we're somewhere in the second set of sectors. The first ten would have been a forest out in the open. I wonder how far the others were dragged down…"

"What are you talking about?" Terron asked. "You keep saying weird stuff like that."

Yimtri looked at Terron. Once again, he no longer seemed to be the Sableye Terron saw at Dusk Mines. He was different. There was no longer a disturbing tone in his voice.

"Like I said last night, Erebus Woods is different from other Mystery Dungeons," Yimtri said. "It's not limited to the inside either. If you stand outside the dungeon for too long, the dungeon will drag you into its depths. It won't wait for you to enter whenever you please. That's why I was rushing you to go inside. If we were to go in willingly, then we all could have stayed together and started at the very beginning. But now… because we stalled… everyone's been separated into different areas of the dungeon. The only reason why the three of us are on the same sector is because I refused to let you get separated, and your friend performed such a similar action with his vines."

At that moment, Terron remembered how Syn had grabbed onto him before they all disappeared into the dungeon. The Cubone looked around and found the Snivy passed out behind them. His vines lay on the ground besides him, completely lifeless.

Terron rushed over to Syn and gently shook him awake.

"It's odd that it's only us here," Yimtri stated. "I suspected we would have been attacked by now. Being dragged down here with the dungeon rendering you unconscious, and then attacked by the denizens of the dungeon… is a common way to die here. I'd say this a rather fortunate turn of events… a miracle I'd say. Just like how the three of us managed to stay together in the same spot rather than be spread out throughout the sector. How blessed we must be."

Terron pretended he didn't hear the comment. He continued to wake up Syn and watched as the Snivy sluggishly came back to his senses. Syn opened his eyes as he tiredly looked around.

"Where are we?" Syn asked. "What is… this place?"

"You're in the second group of sectors of Erebus Woods," Yimtri said as he came over. "You were brought here by the dungeon after you tried to save Terron. You remember that, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do," Syn said slowly. "And that branch… it cut up my vine."

Syn withdrew his vines back inside him, but brought the injured one into his hands. He tried to make the vine grow, but its length only increased by a few inches. It had been severed far too much to be of any real use now. He carefully caressed the plant.

"I didn't feel it when it got cut up," Syn said. "But… what am I going to do now? Will it ever grow back? This hasn't happened to me before."

"It'll heal, but it needs time," Yimtri assured. "Give it a few days, and the vine should be in near perfect condition once more. I've had a few of my members in a situation where part of their inner plant was damaged somehow. It always grew back, no matter the damage."

Syn nodded reluctantly as the vine disappeared inside him. He got to his feet and looked around the dungeon.

"Where's everyone else?" he asked. "I saw them getting wrapped up in those branches you were wrapped up in, but they're not here…"

"They're in another part of the dungeon," Yimtri replied. "I'm sure of it. Escaping the grasps of Erebus is a near impossible task. When it sees you outside its domain, it refuses to let you run free. You saw what happens when it grows impatient."

Syn cringed and stared at the Sableye uncomfortably.

"Terron was saying that we really do die if we die here," Syn said nervously. "Is that really true…? Are we really going to die?"

The Sableye glanced at his fiery orb and frowned unpleasantly.

"… yes, you'll die if you're not careful," Yimtri said bluntly. "That was no lie I told your friend."

"Why didn't you tell anyone that?!" Syn cried. "You told Terron, but you didn't tell the rest of us! Why didn't you say anything?! Why did you hide that from us?! It would have been nice to know! Now we're all going to die here!"

Syn trembled as he finished yelling. He closed his eyes and hugged Terron. He buried his head into the Cubone, and while he wasn't crying, he whimpered something inaudible. Terron looked over at Yimtri, also feeling the same despair Syn felt. Yet, he tried to be brave. He couldn't wimp out like he had earlier that day and the previous night. He needed to be strong for the Snivy. That was the only thing that was preventing Terron from having a breakdown right now.

"Really, why didn't you tell anyone?" Terron asked. "Do your own members not know either? Are you the only one who knows?"

Yimtri stepped away from Terron and went over to the water's edge. He glanced at his reflection in the murky water.

"My members know of this place and its sinister ways," Yimtri started to say. "This place isn't a secret to my members. I would never lie to them about anything. They know everything I know about here. We simply don't tell outsiders the true nature of Erebus Woods or else they'll panic and end up in situations like these."

"Then why did you tell me?" Terron asked. "Why didn't you keep the secret from me? And why couldn't your members just get the stones for the other Fellowships? You don't have to send other Fellowship members into this place. I mean, if you don't want outsiders to panic, why not just send your members, who know so much about this place?"

The Sableye glanced at the Cubone, his expression unreadable.

"Zekra still has your bag, correct?" Yimtri asked, getting off subject.

"Yeah… she does," Terron said oddly.

"Did your team pack an Escape Orb?" Yimtri continued to ask.

"No, we didn't," Terron answered. "We didn't think we'd need one."

Yimtri looked down the stream of water, where the deeper parts of the dungeon lay.

"We need to find the others," Yimtri said. "I have an Escape Orb, but it'll only work for us. If we want to rescue the others, then we must find them. They're probably further into the dungeon. Or at least, I can only hope. Staying still isn't an option."

The Sableye began to walk forward. Terron eyed him as he stayed put.

"You didn't answer my questions," Terron stated.

"No, I didn't," Yimtri replied without looking at the Cubone. "I'm aware of that."

Terron frowned.

"You're not going to answer them?" Terron asked.

"No, I'm not," Yimtri replied simply.

The Sableye continued to wander away, not checking to see if the two were following him.

"If you won't answer those questions, then how can Syn and I trust you?" Terron asked suspiciously. "How do we know if you're really trying to help us? How do we know you're not up to something?"

Yimtri stopped walking. He remained still for a moment, his back turned to the two. After a time, he slowly glanced back at them.

"Because if you don't learn to trust me, you're going to be trapped here forever," Yimtri said gravely.

The air suddenly started to fill with the dreadful aura that Terron hadn't felt since he was outside the dungeon. The Sableye's eerie smile made its way onto his face.

"If you want to become part of this dungeon's collection, then by all means, stay here," he said devilishly. "You'll soon see the terrors Erebus Woods holds. Go on, stay here. Watch your nightmares come to life. See how long your sanity will last you before your spirit is abruptly ripped from your bloody corpse."

Terron and Syn stared at the Sableye, incredibly disturbed by the words coming out of his mouth. The Sableye stared at them for a moment, wearing that grin as he remained in place. The light flickering from the sphere made him look more eerie than usual in its glow.

And then, the dark atmosphere went away, just like that. Yimtri abruptly stopped smiling and rubbed his head, groaning in pain and frustration.

"Just come with me," Yimtri urged, his voice no longer horrifying. "Your friends would appreciate you two not being dead."

Terron and Syn glanced at one another, confused by what had just happened. They couldn't understand why the Sableye was changing attitudes so abruptly. First he was so strange back at Dusk Mines, and then he seemed to act much less creepy when he came here. Then, he abruptly changed back to his creepy ways before going back to what he was now for some strange reason. They didn't understand what was going on. But, they did understand one thing; they couldn't stay where they were. They had to get out of the dungeon, and Yimtri was the best Pokémon to help with that.

They looked at the Sableye and with a sigh, they both walked toward him.

"Fine," Terron said. "But only because you know your way around here. Or at least, I hope so."

"I've ventured through here many times," Yimtri assured. "So yes, I can help you two navigate and search for your stones since we're here anyway."

"I guess," Syn said unenthusiastically.

"What matters most though, is that we find the others," Terron pointed out. "If we see any evolution stones, then sure, we'll pick them up. But otherwise, we'll just focus on finding our friends."

"Yes, our priorities are understood," Yimtri stated.

The Sableye looked back in the direction they needed to head toward.

"Come, let's go," he said. "Erebus will not treat you well, but that doesn't mean you can't escape. Follow me, and I will keep you safe, my children."

The three then pressed forward, heading into the deeper regions of the dungeon. As they walked, Terron couldn't help but stare at the Sableye and wonder what was going through his head. Something was very wrong with Yimtri.

Something was wrong with everything nearby Dusk Mines.

And though Terron didn't know why things were this way, he knew he'd find out. Somehow, he'd figure it out.


End file.
